Alerts

Warning: Trademark correspondence misusing the name of Christopher Aide

1 August 2025

Correspondence regarding purported intellectual property protection, misusing the name of Christopher Aide.

What is the scam?

The SRA has seen an email purporting to be from a genuine solicitor (see below) claiming to be a 'Senior Intellectual Property Lawyer' at 'CDN Mark'.

The email advises the recipient that an application has been made, seeking exclusive rights to their company name or to a brand name used by the recipient. The email invites the recipient to secure trademark registration of the company name and offers to assist with this process.

The SRA has received multiple separate reports of similar correspondence being sent, supposedly on behalf of the firm, with names of various individuals being misused within different bogus emails or documents.

The email provided to the SRA included the telephone number of '+1 ‪416-628-1230' and a address of '80 Richmond St W Suite 1300, Toronto, ON M5H 2A4, Canada'. The website address of 'www.cdnmark.com' also referenced.

The email was sent using an email address of 'chris@cdnmark.com'.

Any business or transaction through the above contact details is not undertaken by a firm or solicitor authorised and regulated by the SRA.

Various versions of similar correspondence have also been sent, misusing names of other individuals and law firms authorised and regulated by the SRA (see linked alerts below).

Is there a genuine firm or person?

The SRA authorises and regulates a solicitor called Christopher Aide.

Christopher Aide has confirmed that he does not have any connection to the email referred to in the above alert.

What should I do?

When a firm's or individual's identity has been copied exactly (or cloned), due diligence is necessary. If you receive correspondence claiming to be from the above firm(s) or individual(s), or information of a similar nature to that described, you should conduct your own due diligence by checking the authenticity of the correspondence by contacting the law firm directly by reliable and established means. You can contact the SRA to find out if individuals or firms are regulated and authorised by the SRA and verify an individual's or firm's practising details. Other verification methods, such as checking public records (e.g. telephone directories and company records) may be required in other circumstances.