Overview

Trademark opposition in India comes at a stage after the registrar has approved the trademark application on the grounds of distinctiveness and published the third-party opposition's trademark in the journal.

Any person can oppose a trademark application filed by an applicant for various reasons during the trademark application stage.

According to Section 21 of the Trademark Act, 'any person' can oppose a trademark, irrespective of his commercial or personal interest in the matter.

A trademark can be countered by filed by a customer, member of the public or competitor, or any other person. Also, the person filing the trademark opposition needs to be a prior registered trademark owner.

Get Started to File Trademark Opposition

Benefits of Trademark Opposition

• In the creation of a brand, the popularity and demand of the public plays a vital role. It is very important for the approval of a Trademark to consult the common public for the Registration of an applied Trademark.
• The owners of the Registered Trademarks have an opportunity to stop any other similar or identical Trademark, which can, in the future, hinder or dilute the reputation of their already registered Trademark.
• The owner can also stop the cause of any possible confusion in the minds of the common public when there is a similar Trademark in the market.

Checklist for Trademark Opposition

A trademark opposition can be raised under different sections like the absolute grounds, relative grounds, prohibited mark, or even concerning the opposed trademark's proprietorship.

The Indian trademark law does not provide any specific grounds of opposition. There are various reasons a trademark opposition may be opposed mentioned below:

• The trademark is similar or identical to an earlier or existing registered trademark
• The trademark is devoid of distinctive character
• The trademark is descriptive
• The trademark registration application is made with bad faith
• The trademark is customary in the current language and or in the established practices of a business
• The trademark is likely to deceive the public or cause confusion
• The trademark is contrary to the law or prevented by law
• The trademark is prohibited under the Emblem and Names Act, 1950
• The trademark contains matters that are likely to hurt any class or section of people's religious feelings

Documents Required For Trademark Opposition

Listed below are the documents and details required for filing a Trademark Opposition.

• Authorization letter
• Affidavit of usage
• Examination report
• Trademark hearing notice
• Documentary proof of Trademark in commercial use
• The duly appointed applicant or the attorney has to appear before the authorities, on the scheduled date

How to File Trademark Opposition Online

The process of filing a responsive Trademark Opposition is complex and involves many process. However, with Filemydoc.com it is easy to file Trademark Opposition, as our professionals can help you with every step of Trademark opposition process.

• Step 1: Opposition Notice
  Any person can file a notice of opposition on a trademark that appears on the trademark journal within four months from the first date of appearance.
  It must be filed on Trademark Form 5 in the prescribed manner and filed with applicable fees.
• Step 2: Counter-Statement
  After the trademark opposition notice is filed with the trademark registrar, the registrar would serve a copy of the trademark opposition notice to the trademark applicant. Within two months of receipt of the trademark, opposition notices the trademark applicant must file the counter statement.
  If the trademark applicant fails to file the counter statement within the specified period, the trademark application shall be "abandoned". However, it is necessary to understand the trademark registration status.
• Step 3: Hearing
  After the evidence filing stage is over, the registrar shall send notices to both parties stating the date of hearing, which shall be at least one month after the date of the first notice. The hearing is based on the notice of opposition, the counter-statement filing, and the filed evidence. The registrar hears the matter by the registrar, and if any of the parties does not show up for the hearing, the registrar will rule against him.
• Step 4: Appeals
  Based on the review of the evidence submitted and the hearing of both the parties, the registrar decides whether the opposition was successful at doing so and, in turn, determines whether the trademark should be registered or not. However, the party aggrieved by the registrar's decision may challenge the same by filing an appeal before the Intellectual property Appellate Board.

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