The Trademark Office examines the filed applications. On average, an application and registration process is likely to take 10-12 months from the time of the filing of the application to that one has a registered trademark. Currently over half of all filed applications are approved by the Trademark Office.
If the applied trademark is distinctive and does not resemble any previously registered trademarks the application is approved and a registration is made.
In the case that an application contains formal deficiencies or features that make the symbol in question unregisterable (e.g. it lacks distinctivity) an interlocutory decision is given. To continue the application process, the applicant has 16 weeks to remove the obstacle in question or to submit further material. If no response is received or the obstacles in question are not removed within the prescribed time, further information is required by the authorities. In theory, the correspondence can continue for a long time, but in practice applicants either submit the required information or makes the changes or alternatively withdraw their unsuccessful applications.
A final refusal to register a trademark may be appealed to the Complaint Board of the National Board of Patent and Registration.
The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide on the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances.
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29 August 1996