Certification Marks

1. What is a certification mark?

A certification mark certifies the nature or origin of the goods or services on or in connection
with which it is used. This includes, for example, region or location or origin, materials of
construction, method or mode of manufacture of goods or provision of services, quality
assurance, accuracy of the goods or services, and any definable characteristic of the goods or
services. It can also certify manufacture of goods or provision of services by members of a union
or other organization to certain standards.

2. What are some examples of certification marks?

One example is the GOOD HOUSEKEEPING SEAL OF APPROVAL. The Good Housekeeping
Institute awards the Good Housekeeping Seal, which stands as one of the most recognized
consumer product insignia in the United States. The seal represents Good Housekeeping
Magazine’s limited warranty that if any product that carries the seal is found defective within
two years from the date of purchase, Good Housekeeping will either replace it or refund the
purchase price.

Another example is the CE mark, which indicates that a product complies with safety, health or
environmental requirements set by the European Commission (CE originally stood for
Communauté Européenne (French for “European Community”)). The CE mark is mandatory on
certain products sold within the European Economic Area (EEA; the EEA comprises the 28
member states of the European Union and the 4 member states of the European Free Trade
Association (Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway and Switzerland)) and Turkey.
The PSE (Product Safety Electric Appliance and Material) mark of approval indicates that a
product complies with Japanese standards for electric appliances.

Another example is the WOOLMARK logo, used to identify goods that are 100 percent wool.

3. What criteria or conditions must be satisfied in order to obtain a certification mark

registration?

Normally, an applicant will be required to produce operating rules and a regulation identifying
what is being certified by the mark and the required standards. The organization doing the
certifying cannot itself engage in the production or marketing of the goods or services but must
be competent to certify that any user has met the requirements. Through the agreement, executed
by the user, confirming adherence to the rules and regulations, the organization must be able to
control, or legitimately exercise control over, the permitted use. There will need to be methods of
testing and quality control with appointed individuals or bodies to periodically ensure
conformance by any user. The manufacturers or users may be prevented from using the mark if
an audit reveals a lack of compliance with the standards set by the organization.

4. Are the systems or requirements the same for all countries?

The above guidelines apply to many countries, with some local variations. For example, in some
countries it is necessary to show that registration is in the public interest and to the public
advantage. Once a certification mark holder has obtained approval under the rules of a major
country, the certification mark likely will be acceptable in other countries with some slight
amendments as to form and content, taking into account local requirements such as public policy
and local rules on aspects of the operation of the certification scheme.

5. What is the process for registration of a certification mark?

A certification mark application is similar in many respects to an ordinary trademark application.

The mark will be examined as to registrability and conflict with prior rights, depending on the
jurisdiction concerned. Very often there will be amendments or some additional requirements to
meet the certification requirements, such as the identification of important standards. The United
States has a separate application form and classification system for certification marks.

6. What can I do in those countries where certification mark registrations are not
available?

In some countries where there are no provisions for certification, it may be possible to obtain
registration of the mark as a collective or association mark. In most cases, the requirements are
similar to those for certification marks; in other cases, however, they may be less prescriptive.
Where no special registrations for certification or collective marks are available, the mark owner
may apply for an ordinary trademark registration and then enter into a licensing arrangement
with approved users in the country concerned.