Unregistered trademark is a mark which is not benefited by trademark protection through trademark registration.
Unregistered trademark may be protectable only within the geographical area within which it has been used or in geographical areas into which it may be reasonably expected to expand. These trademark rights are enforced by pursuant by passing off. There are laws for unregistered trademarks to gain protection, where the goods and services must have a highly significant position in the market for sales in that particular class of goods and services.
Unregistered trademark are found to be more in number and hence the trademark applicants perform searches of the registered trademarks. These searches are performed by companies prior to an application. Passing off is a remedy for a business that is been trading under unregistered trademark.