A trademark can be objected to by the Examiner during the examination of a trademark application. This objection could be based upon one of the multiple legal grounds of trademark objection. An application can be rejected by the examiner if it is felt that the trademark is against the legal/moral/ethical principles.
An examiner is appointed by the Trademark Registry Office and is in charge of examining the trademark application and thereby preparing the examination report.
In the rare cases where a mark is accepted without any objections, the application is approved and is forwarded for publication in the Trademark Journal.
After the examination, a report containing the opinions and objections raised by the Registrar, if any, is generated. This report is called the “Examination Report”.
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An applicant can track the status of trademark application by the official online portal provided by the Government. The trademark application number is required to check the status of the application.
If an application has been objected to by the Examiner, the status of the application is shown as “Objected”, accompanied by the alert of “Awaiting Reply to Examination Report”. This alert signifies the fact that the applicant must reply to the objections in the Examination Report.
It is pertinent that the reply is submitted within 30 days from the date of receiving the Report, else there is a major risk of the applicant losing claim over the trademark and having to start over. Modern businesses may handle the registration and renewal processes at the Patent and Trademark Office with the help of Trademark Renewal Service's experience. Additionally, it can be maintained permanently by completing an online trademark renewal application and paying the required trademark renewal fees.
The examination report prepared by the examiner contains the grounds of objection and the provisions of law under which such grounds are constituted. The major grounds of objection are as follows:
Select packages as per your choice and fill out the forms
(2-3 working days) We Will draft a comprehensive agreement based upon your selection and requirements.
(2-3 working days) We Will provide you with a copy of the agreement for you to revise.
(1-2 working days) Ig you still feel that there is something that can be modified, we will promptly add it.
(2-3 working days) We Will do the final submission of soft/hard copies to you.
It is pertinent for a proprietor to make sure that if there are objections against the mark, they are replied to within one month from the date of receiving the Examination Report. These objections could be on any of the aforementioned grounds. It is also highly necessary that the Reply to the Examination Report is well-drafted, so that the matter does not require a hearing and the application is selected.
For a reply to be considered well-drafted, it should contain arguments as to why your trademark should be registered, including all the sections and case-laws which support your argument. Legal support is a key necessity when drafting such a reply, as strong and factual arguments can make your mark to be deemed worthy of being registered.
An efficient and specific reply helps in a hassle-free procurement of trademark registration. In a situation where the reply to the objections is not satisfactory, the applicant gets another chance to get the mark registered by requesting for a hearing. A failure to submit the Reply would result in the abandonment of the whole application.
The status of the trademark application can be checked using the official online portal provided by the Government of India. If an application is objected to, the status of the application displays “Objected”.
No, there is no prescribed Government fee to file a Reply.
The process of trademark registration can be done by anyone, but it is advised to get help to avoid any future hassles. The filing and drafting should be done by a legal expert so that the objections are replied to in a way that the application is accepted. If no legal help is taken, the application might get refused.
Yes, the Attorney can be changed by re-filing of TM-48 with all the adequate details.
An objection arises before the trademark is registered, whereas an opposition is filed by third parties after the trademark has been published in the trademark journal.
The status of the Application will change and the message “Awaiting Reply to Examination Report” will be removed.
The Examiner, if satisfied by the reply, will pass the examination and it will be published in the trademark journal.
The Examiner will issue a show cause notice for hearing if the Reply to the Examination Report is deemed unsatisfactory.
The trademark examination report of the objection over trademark on the website of IP India.
The trademark experts draft and file a reply within 3 days of raising an objection that is received subject to the available documents.
