Chains like Wal-Mart, Old Navy and others took the Quebec government to court and won two years ago.
They didn't have to add French descriptors to their trademarked names — along the lines of "Les Jouets Toys 'R' Us" and "Les Électroniques Best Buy".
On Thursday, the government announced new rules for businesses with English names.
As of three weeks from now, on Nov. 24, all such new businesses, or businesses which put up new signs, must have those descriptors somewhere on their storefronts.
Everyone will have to comply with the law after the three-year period has elapsed.
Robert Vezina, the head of the Office Québécois de la Langue Française, says more needs to be done to protect the French language in business.
"Here, what is at stake is the presence of French in the commercial environment," Vezina says.
Back in 2014, the Quebec Court of Appeal sided with Best Buy and others, who argued they didn't have to add French words to their trademarked names in order to do business in the province.