Answer ... Yes, a third party can oppose a trademark application.

Answer ... Any person may oppose a trademark application on any of the following grounds (Section 38 of the Trademarks Act):

• The application does not conform to the requirements of Section 30(2) of the act, without taking into account whether it meets the requirement in Section 30(3) of the act;
• The application was filed in bad faith;
• The trademark is not registrable;
• The applicant is not the person entitled to registration of the trademark;
• The trademark is not distinctive
• At the filing date of the application in Canada, determined without taking into account Section 34(1) of the act, the applicant was not using and did not propose to use the trademark in Canada in association with the goods or services specified in the application; or
• At the filing date of the application in Canada, determined without taking into account Section 34(1) of the act, the applicant was not entitled to use the trademark in Canada in association with those goods or services.

Answer ... A statement of opposition or a request for an extension of time to file a statement of opposition must be filed within two months of advertisement of the trademark application in the Trademarks Journal.

Answer ... The Trademarks Opposition Board.

Answer ... Once a trademark application has been advertised in the Trademarks Journal, any party may file a statement of opposition or request a two-month benchmark extension of time to file a statement of opposition within two months of advertisement of the trademark application in the Trademarks Journal. The Registrar must:

• determine whether the statement of opposition raises a substantial issue; and
• ensure that all grounds are properly pleaded.

A counterstatement must then be filed within two months of the date on which the Registrar forwards the statement of opposition to the applicant. A one-month benchmark extension of time to file a counterstatement is available to the applicant.

Following this, the opponent has four months from the effective date of service of the counterstatement to file its evidence or a statement that it will not be submitting evidence. A two-month extension of time is available to file the opponent’s evidence with the applicant’s consent.

Similarly, the applicant has four months from the effective date of service of the opponent’s evidence or statement that the opponent will not be submitting evidence to file the applicant’s evidence or a statement that the applicant will not be submitting evidence. A two-month extension of time is available to file the applicant’s evidence with the opponent’s consent.

Following the above, the parties have the option to cross-examine the other party’s evidence, submit written representations and request a hearing, details of which can be found in the Canadian Intellectual Property Office practice note entitled “Practice in Trademark Opposition Proceedings”.

Answer ... The decision of the Registrar may be appealed to the Federal Court as per Section 56 of the Trademarks Act within two months of the date on which notice of the decision is dispatched by the Registrar.