be inconsistent with both functions to the extent that prohibiting a company to use a competitor's name in order to convey correct information to consumers makes communication less efficient and more costly (linguistic function), and makes it hard for the company to explain why the products it sells are different from the competitor's, which would create a trust problem (trust function) Why is the trust function more important than the linguistic one? Because frustrating the linguistic function would lead to higher search costs, while frustrating the trust function would cause market failure due to the fact that customers can't tell the products apart anymore. What happens when two products are virtually indistinguishable, because the brands are very similar for instance? The use of the same word will usually not frustrate the trust function, which is more crucial than the linguistic function. This might produce higher search costs for consumers, but as long as additional information is provided, the trust function is preserved and consumers can still distinguish the two products, although in some cases additional information can create even more confusion. Case Law (the "Lego case") (the "Barbie case") (the "Veuve Cliquot case") See also Intellectual property law in Canada Canadian Intellectual Property Office Trademarks Opposition Board Opposition proceedings Section 45 proceedings Trademarks Journal Trademark symbol Official mark World Intellectual Property Organization Further reading References External links Trademarks Act (R.S.C. 1985, c. T-13) Canadian intellectual property law