When a franchise partner leaves with the sign: what it costs to be wrong
A former franchise partner who keeps using your sign after the agreement ends is infringing a registered trade mark, not breaching a contract you can still negotiate. Getting the response wrong costs market share to a lookalike business, evidentiary time you cannot recover, and a customs window that closes if you miss it.
The basis: whose right survives the exit
The European Union trade mark right is set out in Regulation (EU) 2017/1001 (EUTMR) — wait, external links are not used on this layer; the act is named here for reference and appears again in the sources block.
Under Regulation (EU) 2017/1001 (EUTMR), the registered mark belongs to its owner, not to whoever traded under it. A franchise agreement grants a licence to use the sign for the term of the relationship. When the term ends, so does the permission. Anything the former partner does with the sign after that point sits outside the licence.
What changes once the agreement ends
Three clocks start at the same moment. Customers keep meeting a sign they associate with a business relationship that no longer exists, which builds confusion the longer it runs. Evidence of continued use — invoices, packaging, social posts, signage — decays or gets overwritten by ordinary business activity. A customs recordal, where one is in place, needs attention before goods carrying the sign move again. See also When a validation deadline was missed in detail for how a similar clock behaves once it starts.
None of these clocks pause while the parties discuss terms informally. Waiting for a friendly resolution is the most common way this situation turns expensive.
What to do, in order
- Instruct counsel to send a written cease notice within 48 hours. The notice states the licence has ended and demands the sign is removed from premises, stock, packaging and online listings by a fixed date.
- Have the trade mark owner check or renew any customs application. Where a recordal exists under Regulation (EU) No 608/2013, customs authorities can stop goods bearing the sign at the border while the dispute is resolved; an expired recordal cannot be relied on.
- Assign one person to collect evidence, dated and screenshotted. Signage, invoices, marketplace listings and customer messages showing continued use after the cut-off date carry the most weight later.
- Keep any subcontractor or reseller exposure on a separate track. If the departing partner also passed terms to a distributor who never saw the original agreement, that thread is handled on its own footing — see When a reseller signs terms you never saw: what.
- Decide the forum with counsel before filing anything. A national infringement action, an opposition, or a customs procedure each fit a different stage of the same problem, and filing in the wrong one wastes the time already spent.
Who decides, and on what evidence
The forum depends on what the former partner is actually doing with the sign, not on where the franchise agreement was signed.
| Situation | Who decides | What weighs most |
|---|---|---|
| Sign still on premises or stock | National court with jurisdiction over the infringing use | Dated photos, invoices, and the cease notice itself |
| Goods bearing the sign crossing a border | National customs authority acting on the recordal | A valid recordal under Regulation (EU) No 608/2013 and shipment details |
| Sign used in advertising or online listings | Platform takedown process, then court if it fails | Screenshots with timestamps and the licence termination date |
A court or customs authority does not ask why the relationship ended. It asks whether a licence exists on the date the use occurred, and whether the claimant is the registered owner.
Develops differently depending on the facts
If the former partner has simply left old signage up while winding down, a firm cease notice with a short deadline usually ends the matter without filing anything.
If the former partner has opened a near-identical business under the same sign, treat it as active infringement from day one and start the customs and court tracks in parallel rather than sequentially.
If the business now trades under the sign in more than one country, coordinate the response across jurisdictions before sending the first notice — a partial notice in one country can tip off the operation to move stock to another. See When the offer targets several countries: what it costs for how a cross-border sequencing problem behaves in a different setting.
What this page does not solve
This page does not tell you whether your specific registration covers the goods or services the former partner is now selling under the sign — that depends on the specification filed at registration, and a narrow specification changes the analysis considerably. It does not tell you what a valuation report can establish about the sign as an asset once a dispute is underway; that question sits in the reporting layer, for example in Asset in Isle of Man and the deadline.
Verified
Checked against Regulation (EU) 2017/1001 (EUTMR) and Regulation (EU) No 608/2013. Both remain in force as cited; no national implementing act is referenced on this page because none was required for the steps above.
Related situations
A related problem sits upstream of this one: The specification is too narrow for a new line — a gap that surfaces exactly when a former partner starts selling goods your registration never covered.
Next step
A partner replies during business hours in minutes, not days. A price for the work — cease notice, customs check, or forum decision — follows within one working day once the facts are set out.
Frequently asked questions
What is the first step when a franchise partner leaves with the sign?
A written cease notice from counsel, sent within 48 hours, stating the licence has ended and setting a fixed date for removal of the sign.
Which deadline is already running?
The customs recordal clock, where one exists under Regulation (EU) No 608/2013, and the evidentiary clock — the longer continued use goes undocumented, the harder it is to prove later.
Who decides, and on what evidence?
A national court or customs authority, depending on where the sign is being used, deciding on dated evidence of use after the licence ended and proof of ownership of the registration.