Succession and sale / Question 6
Buying a company? Check the brand before you sign.
Intelligence, not legal advice. Screening is a starting point, not a clearance opinion.
The name is often part of what you pay for. Before signing, check three things on the register: that the marks are held by the company you are buying, that they cover what it sells, and which renewal and opposition dates are running. Your counsel confirms.
01 / Who holds the marks
The company, or its founder?
To prepare a purchase, UBS advises buyers to be clear about their strategic goals, the funds available and the roles involved. (UBS, Selling a company) The register belongs in the same early review.
The register names the holder. A mark held by the founder personally is not the company’s, and moves only by a written transfer, which takes effect against third parties acting in good faith once it is entered in the register. (MSchG Art. 17(2))
In our analysis, 37% of trademark applications filed in Switzerland from July to September 2026 named a holder with no company legal form, typically a private person.
Antevo analysis of national trademark applications in the Swiss register (Swissreg, IPI) with a filing date from 1 July to 30 September 2026, the latest full quarter our copy of the register holds almost completely; as of 16 October 2026. A holder name counts as carrying a legal form when it contains a recognised company or organisation form (AG, GmbH, SA, Sàrl, Sagl, Ltd, cooperative, foundation, association and others). The rule fails safe: a company whose form it does not recognise counts as having none, so the share may run slightly high. Address and representative as recorded by the IPI; the 429 applications without a recorded address are not in the Swiss-address figures. Counts only: no holder is named.
Check a brand name ↑02 / What they cover
The goods and services, and their use.
Protection follows the goods and services listed in the registration, and the list cannot be extended once the mark is registered. (IPI)
A mark not used for the listed goods or services for five consecutive years can no longer be asserted, unless there are proper reasons for the non-use. (MSchG Art. 12(1))
Check a brand name ↑03 / Which dates are running
Renewal, opposition and the neighbours.
A Swiss registration is renewed ten years at a time; the request reaches the IPI within the last twelve months before expiry, and at the latest six months after it. (MSchG Art. 10(3)) A new Swiss registration can be opposed for three months after its publication. (MSchG Art. 31(2))
Marks close to the name, held by others, can matter as much as the company’s own. The check lists them, with office and status.
Check a brand name ↑04 / In Antevo
Screen the target’s name in a minute.
The free check screens a name across 50+ trademark registers and lists the marks near it, with office, status and the holder where it is a company. No account needed; the answer appears on this page. A free account then watches one name for new filings.
Check a brand name ↑Sources
Where this comes from.
The study behind the figures and the primary sources for every legal point. Intelligence, not advice: nothing here is legal, tax, estate or investment advice, and your lawyer, notary or tax specialist confirms anything a decision rests on.