If you have not registered your trademark in Canada, now is the time. Our northern neighbor will soon implement a massive overhaul to its Trade-marks Act, pursuant to 2014 legislation that has been on hold pending the adoption of corresponding regulations. Among other things, use of a trademark in Canada (or anywhere in the world, for that matter) will no longer be a prerequisite to ownership and enforcement of a Canadian trademark registration. The race to the Canadian Intellectual Property Office (CIPO) will be open to competitors, squatters, and trolls whose intent may be to re-sell trademark rights at a profit, interfere with a legitimate trademark owner’s ability to use a trademark in Canada, and possibly even demand a ransom at the border for importation of genuine goods. Filing a Canadian trademark application now, even if only defensively for future market expansion, should be given serious and immediate consideration.