After a trade mark has been published

When a trade mark application is accepted it is advertised in our on-line Journal. There is then a period of three months from the date of publication when you can raise an objection to our decision. We cannot extend this period of three months.

There are two ways in which a mark can be objected to;

Third party observations

If you think that we accepted the application in error because we did not have all the relevant facts. You can bring these additional facts to our attention for review. This is known as making third party observations and is not a formal legal action.

Opposition

Alternatively, if you wish to formally raise legal objections to the trade mark application you can oppose the application. Opposition is the legal procedure that allows you to try to stop a published mark going on to become registered.

You can oppose the entire application, or only some of the goods or services it covers.