The Semiotic Analysis of Trademark Law

Current thinking about trademark law is dominated by economic analysis, which views the law as a system of rules designed to promote informational efficiencies. Yet the economic analysis has failed to explain, because it is unequipped to do so, a number of concepts of fundamental importance in the l...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:UCLA law review 2004-02, Vol.51 (3), p.621
Main Author: Beebe, Barton
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Commercial law
Economic analysis
Lanham Act 1946-US
Linguistics
Semiotics
Signaling
Theory
Trademarks
Online Access:Get full text
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Summary:Current thinking about trademark law is dominated by economic analysis, which views the law as a system of rules designed to promote informational efficiencies. Yet the economic analysis has failed to explain, because it is unequipped to do so, a number of concepts of fundamental importance in the law, most notably the concepts of trademark "distinctiveness" and trademark "dilution." This article proposes that a more robust understanding of trademark law may be achieved by viewing the law through the lens of semiotics, a systems-theoretical field of knowledge, of which structural linguistics forms a part, dedicated to the study of signs and sign-systems. It concludes by arguing on semiotic grounds that trademark tarnishment is not a form of trademark dilution and that the requirement that a trademark be inherently distinctive to merit antidilution protection is incoherent.
ISSN:0041-5650
1943-1724