Federal Trademark Dilution Act of 1995
PL 104-98 (H.R.1295), enacted 01/16/1996

PUBLIC LAW 104-98^JAN. 16, 1996 
109 STAT. 985 
Public Law 104-98 
104th Congress 
An Act 
To amend the Trademark Act of 1946 to make certain revisions relating to the 
Jan. 16, 1996 
protection of famous marks. 
[H.R. 1295] 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives 
of 
the United States of America in Congress assembled. 
Federal 
Trademark 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
Dilution Act of 
1995 
This Act may be cited as the "Federal Trademark Dilution 
15 use 1051 
Act of 1995". 
note. 
SEC. 2. REFERENCE TO THE TRADEMARK ACT OF 1946. 
For purposes of this Act, the Act entitled "An Act to provide 
for the registration and protection of trade-marks used in commerce, 
to carry out the provisions of certain international conventions, 
and for other purposes", approved July 5, 1946 (15 U.S.C. 1051 
and following), shall be referred to as the "Trademark Act of 1946". 
SEC. 3. REMEDIES FOR DILUTION OF FAMOUS MARKS. 
(a) REMEDIES.—Section 43 of the Trademark Act of 1946 (15 
U.S.C. 1125) is amended by adding at the end the following new 
subsection: 
"(c)(1) The owner of a famous mark shall be entitled, subject 
to the principles of equity and upon such terms as the court deems 
reasonable, to an injunction against another person's commercial 
use in commerce of a mark or trade name, if such use begins 
after the mark has become famous and causes dilution of the 
distinctive quality of the mark, and to obtain such other relief 
as is provided in this subsection. In determining whether a mark 
is distinctive and famous, a court may consider factors such as, 
but not limited to— 
"(A) the degree of inherent or acquired distinctiveness of 
the mark; 
"(B) the duration and extent of use of the mark in connec-
tion with the goods or services with which the mark is used; 
"(C) the duration and extent of advertising and publicity 
of the mark; 
"(D) the geographical extent of the trading area in which 
the mark is used; 
"(E) the channels of trade for the goods or services with 
which the mark is used; 
"(F) the degree of recognition of the mark in the trading 
areas and channels of trade used by the marks' owner and 
the person against whom the injunction is sought; 
"(G) the nature and extent of use of the same or similar 
marks by third parties; and 
109 STAT. 986 
PUBLIC LAW 104-98—JAN. 16, 1996 
"(H) whether the mark was registered under the Act of 
March 3, 1881, or the Act of February 20, 1905, or on the 
principal register. 
"(2) In an action brought under this subsection, the owner 
of the famous mark shall be entitled only to injunctive relief unless 
the person against whom the injunction is sought willfully intended 
to trade on the owner's reputation or to cause dilution of the 
famous mark. If such willful intent is proven, the owner of the 
famous mark shall also be entitled to the remedies set forth in 
sections 35(a) and 36, subject to the discretion of the court and 
the principles of equity. 
"(3) The ownership by a person of a valid registration under 
the Act of March 3, 1881, or the Act of February 20, 1905, or 
on the principal register shall be a complete bar to an action 
against that person, with respect to that mark, that is brought 
by another person under the common law or a statute of a State 
and that seeks to prevent dilution of the distinctiveness of a mark, 
label, or form of advertisement. 
"(4) The following shall not be actionable under this section: 
"(A) Fair use of a famous mark by another person in 
comparative commercial advertising or promotion to identify 
the competing goods or services of the owner of the famous 
mark. 
"(B) Noncommercial use of a mark. 
"(C) All forms of news reporting and news commentary.". 
(b) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—^The heading for title VIII of 
the Trademark Act of 1946 is amended by striking "AND FALSE 
DESCRIPTIONS" and inserting ", FALSE DESCRIPTIONS, AND 
DILUTION". 
SEC. 4. DEFINITION. 
Section 45 of the Trademark Act of 1946 (15 U.S.C. 1127) 
is amended by inserting after the paragraph defining when a mark 
shall be deemed to be "abandoned" the following: 
"The term 'dilution' means the lessening of the capacity of 
a famous mark to identify and distinguish goods or services, regard-
less of the presence or absence of— 
"(1) competition between the owner of the famous mark 
and other parties, or 
"(2) likelihood of confusion, mistake, or deception.". 
PUBLIC LAW 104r-98—JAN. 16, 1996 
109 STAT. 987 
SEC. 5. EFFECTIVE DATE. 
15 USC 1125 
This Act and the amendments made by this Act shall take 
effect on the date of the enactment of this Act. 
Approved January 16, 1996. 
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY—H.R. 1295: 
HOUSE REPORTS: No. 104-374 (Comm. on the Judiciary). 
CONGRESSIONAL RECORD, Vol. 141 (1995): 
Dec. 12, considered and passed House. 
Dec. 29, considered and passed Senate. 
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