Overview

Trademark hearing is a physical appearance before the registrar of trademarks both in person or by a trademark attorney or trademark agent for removing the objections proposed under review from a report announced after a trademark registration statement or application. The prospects for trademark objection are nowadays very important and trademark hearing occurs if the register authority is not satisfied with the response registered against the objection proposed in the final report in the method of trademark certification.

Trademark objections happen when there is something wrong with the way the application has been filed, with the trademark itself or some other reasons. While the reply to the examination report is enough to aid you in getting your application and your trademark accepted, there are many times that they are not helpful. Therefore, the next step is the trademark hearing.

If you’re an entrepreneur or a business head who has received a show cause notice for your trademark application, then there will be a need for you to present your case to the Trademark Examiner against the trademark objection raised by the concerned authority. This Article will help you understand the trademark hearing process in India and prepare you to take the right steps forward. Therefore, you should only look for nothing but the best trademark attorneys. Fortunately, Legaltax can provide you with legal aid that has tenacity, talent and willpower to get your rejected trademark accepted.

What Are the Objections That Could Result in a Trademark Hearing in India?

• Incomplete Information in the application or Incorrect Information.

• If there is a Similar or there is an existence of a Trademark then it leads towards Trademark Hearing.

• Furthermore, any third party or member of the public may register a trademark objection in the public interest:

• 1. When the trademark is registered with the Trademark Office, it is published in the Trademark Journal.

  2. When a trademark is used before it is registered.

Eligibility Criteria For Trademark Hearing In India?

In order to be eligible for trademark hearing, your trademark reply should have been rejected by the Registrar of trademark.

List of Jurisdiction of Trademark Hearing in India

The regional jurisdiction for Trademark Applications and hearings has been divided into five zones, each of which includes numerous states and union territories, as follows:

• Ahmedabad: The State of Rajasthan and Gujarat, along with the Union Territories of Diu, Dadra and Nagar Haveli, and Daman.

• Chennai: Union Territories such as Lakshadweep Island and Pondicherry. The states are Kerala, Tamilnadu, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, and Telangana.

• Mumbai: States such as Madhya Pradesh, Goa, Maharashtra, and Chhattisgarh.

• New Delhi: Union territories of Chandigarh, and the states of Jammu & Kashmir, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Delhi, Punjab, and Uttarakhand.

• Kolkata: States such as Bihar, Orissa, Manipur, Meghalaya, Tripura, Arunachal Pradesh, Mizoram, Sikkim, Assam, Jharkhand. Union Territories of Andaman & Nicobar Island, and Nagaland.

What Are the Documents Required for Trademark Hearing?

To be able to prove your case in front of the Registrar, you need to prove to the Hearing Officer that you have been using the brand in good faith. You can also provide the following documents to the Registry as proof:

• LETTER OF AUTHORIZATION: Once you’ve chosen a Trademark Agent/ Attorney or any other person to attend the hearing on your behalf, you’ll have to draft the Letter of Authorization to make it official.

• Purchase orders

• Invoices from vendors

• CA certificate certifying the revenue earned/ expenses made till date in the name of the brand

• Brochures, visiting card, letterheads

• Social media marketing page screenshots

• Website screenshots, if any

• Advertising material

• Photographs of exhibition stalls

• Photographs of the packaging material having brand usage on it along with a printing bill with a date

• Any other document containing the trademark brand name, logo, or tagline if applied for

• Any other document containing the trademark brand name, logo, or tagline if applied for

Trademark Hearing Process in India:

• Trademark Hearing Notice: Once the Trademark Hearing Notice has been received by the appropriate body, a draft of the notice should be prepared, including any relevant information that will assist the entity in resolving the objection.

• Person or Trademark Attorney needs to appear: The person or his Trademark/agent counsel must appear before the authorities with the relevant papers and submissions on the conditions and date provided in the hearing notice. There will be no specific dress requirement, although it is expected to be formal.

• Beginning for the preparation of Trademark Hearing: Write a letter of opposition to a trademark hearing. Collect all relevant evidence, such as purchase orders, screenshots from websites, vendor invoices, and any other documentation that can enable you to prove your position and assist legislation in accepting your trademark.

• Trademark Hearing in front of Trademark Registrar: After you have presented all of your material to the Trademark Registrar, the Trademark Registrar will evaluate it and go over all of the proof provided by you or your attorney, who has provided all of the information surrounding your trademark in detail. Your trademark will be accepted if the Trademark Officer is satisfied with the information, or it will be refused if the Trademark Officer is not satisfied with the information. The trademark officer has complete authority to reject it on the spot or to suspend it for a few days if he believes further clarification is required.

What is the Process of Adjourning a Trademark Hearing?

A Trademark Hearing can be extended for an appearance by the concerned director, or it can be suspended or adjourned suo moto by filing an application TM-M with charges or costs of Rs 900, but it must be filed at least 3 days before the hearing time. If you fail to appear at a Trademark Hearing, the concerned administrator may adjourn the hearing two to three times at his discretion, but not more than that and your Trademark will be refused.

What Are the Requirements of Trademarks?

An ideal trademark should be attractive in appearance and sound and recommend the nature of the product. Most importantly a perfect trademark should be executed in such a manner that it can be unique from other trademarks of the same class and should be ready to be registered and protected. The following are the few qualities of a good trademark that should be considered before trademark registration:

• A trademark must be a mark that comprises a device, brand, label, heading, ticket, word, letter, signature, name, packaging, numeral, or combination of colours or any sequence of the above attributes.

• It should be simple to pronounce and spell. A good trademark is such that the public can simply speak and spell.

• Further, it should be easy to identify and remember. A good trademark that is easy to speak and spell can be simply identified as well. So that it becomes simple for the public as well.

• It should not be too long and should preferably be difficult to forget easily. If it is lengthy or difficult, people will not bother to take the effort to memorise it and, ultimately, it will be forgotten.

• It must be unique. It can be natural distinctiveness or obtained distinctiveness.

• The best trademarks are designed terms or words or coined words or different geometrical patterns and designs.

• It can only be indicative of the nature of the products, but not descriptive

• A good trademark should not be excluded under the Trademarks Act under the prohibited categories of trademarks

What Are the Benefits of Trademark Hearing?

1. Legally Protected: If a trademark is registered, the owner of the mark can take action or sue for losses and maintain the presence in the market.

2. Builds a Brand Image: As trademark registration comes under the Intellectual property of the company, it can be sold or can be changed or approved to produce income.

3. Creates Trust: Every customer feels secured with a brand whose trademark is filed with the trademark authority.

Why Choose Legaltax?

LEGALTAX is India’s largest professional platform of lawyers, chartered accountants, and company secretaries-with years of experience behind. We execute legal work for over 500 companies and LLPs every month, by leveraging our tech capabilities, and the expertise of our team of legal professionals.

1. Customer Score: We make your interaction with the government as smooth as possible by doing all the paperwork for you. We will also give you absolute clarity on the process to set realistic expectations.

2. 100-Strong Team: With a team of over 300 experienced business advisors and legal professionals, you are just a phone call away from the best in legal services.

3. Access To Experts: We provide access to reliable professionals and coordinate with them to fulfil all your legal requirements. You can also track the progress on our online platform, at all times

4. Realistic Expectations: By handling all the paperwork, we ensure a seamless interactive process with the government. We provide clarity on the incorporation process to set realistic expectations.