The good will built up by a manufacturer in respect of his good is an invaluable asset over which every manufacturer has ownership. This goodwill is an intangible commodity. The intellectual property regime protects not the intangible, but rather their tangible manifestations. The good will is manifested in the trade mark of the manufacturer. The trade mark forms the link between the goods and the manufacturer using which the manufacturer of particular goods may be identified.

There are primarily, two theories of justification for the protection of intellectual property

1. Labour justification theory – John Locke is the major propounder of this theory. The theory states that labour is an unpleasant activity, and the person undertaking labour must be rewarded for the same. This is also known as labour avoidance theory. The owner of the trade mark undertakes considerable effort in advertising and promoting the goods under his trade mark. Thus he must be given the right over such trade marks in exclusion of the rest of the world.
2. Personality justification theory – Hegel is the major propounder of this theory. The theory provides that intellectual property is an embodiment of the personality of the creator of such property. Thus the creator has an exclusive claim upon them. The trademark acquires goodwill only in reference to the goods marketed under it. These goods acquire the said goodwill due to various reasons such as quality, etc which is due to the manufacturer. Further the manufacturer designs or chooses the trademark to represent him in respect of the goods to the consumers. Thus they manufacturer must have some exclusive rights over the trademark it being a manifestation of his personality.

In advertising the goods, the manufacturer actually advertises his trademark

Trademarks represent the goods as belonging to or originating from a particular manufacturer. The consumers associate the goods to the manufacturer using the trademark. If the quality of the goods provided a particular manufacturer are of a good quality, then the consumers associate them with the trade mark of the manufacturer and buy the same goods in future or recommend it to others using the trademark used upon the goods. In advertising the goods, the manufacturer actually advertises his trademark. Thus a trademark carries with it the entire business of the manufacturer and if it were used by any other person then the consumers, in a false belief of it having arisen from the manufacturer holding the rights over the trademark, will be deceived, thus not only causing loss of profits to the manufacturer but also causing loss to the public.