Glossary
French: déchéance de marque
Déchéance de marque is the loss of the rights attached to a trademark registration for reasons set out in the Intellectual Property Code. Unlike invalidity (which attacks the registration as granted), revocation sanctions what happens — or fails to happen — after registration. The closest US analog is cancellation of a registration for abandonment or genericness.
Non-use — the mark has not been used within the five years following its registration: déchéance pour non-usage. Compare US abandonment, but note the differences: a fixed five-year grace period from registration (versus the three-year non-use presumption in the US), and no French or EU equivalent of the Section 8/71 declarations of use.
Deceptive use — use of the mark has become liable to mislead the public: déchéance pour déceptivité (deceptiveness).
Genericide — the mark has become generic, losing its capacity to distinguish goods or services because the public uses it as an everyday word: déchéance pour dégénérescence.
Revocation actions against French marks can be brought administratively before the INPI — a faster, cheaper route than court proceedings — or before the courts, including as a counterclaim in infringement litigation.
See also: trademark cancellation.