Registering trademark under new trademark rules 2017

Date : 05 Aug, 2019

Post By Sankul Nagpal

Intellectual Property is a type of property that includes intangible (i.e. invisible/untouchable) creations of human intellect. There are different kinds of intellectual properties, one of them is a trademark. A trademark can be a sign, design, symbol or a word which is legally registered or established by use which represents a company or a product. The aim of having a trademark is to protect the company or product from unauthorized use or infringement. A trademark helps a consumer in recognizing and differentiating between other available good of the same nature.

In India, a trademark is governed by the Trademark Act, 1999 and the new Trademark Rules of 2017. Though registration of a trademark is not mandatory under the law but it is highly suggested to get yours registered in order to claim a better protection against infringers.

PROCESS OF REGISTRATION OF TRADEMARK

You need to follow these steps in order to get your trademark registered:

Distinctiveness: First step is to select a mark/symbol for your company/product which is distinct and unique in character.
Search: The Applicant must conduct a search before filing for registration so as to avoid duplication and rejection.
Application: After the search has been done the application for registration can be filed with the trademark registry and number.
Examination: Once application has been filed, a proper examination is conducted by the trademark office in order to ensure correctness of the same. Thereafter, if any objections are made they have to be met by the applicant.
Publication: Next step involves the publication of the application to call for objections from any person who may suffer from the registration of the proposed mark.
Registration: If any objections are raised within the stipulated time, the trademark officer will review the same and the mark will get registered only if the decision falls in favor of the applicant.

New Trademark Rules 2017

The new rules of 2017 for trademark registration are quite different from the earlier ones. The provisions while registering trademark are now being simplified in order to ease the process out.

Few changes that have been made are as follows:

Reduction in the number of forms: Clearing the mess from having to fill 75 different forms to just 8 neatly divided forms so as to avoid confusion.
E-filing: To promote the concept of digital India , the fee structure has been revised and has been made lower for re-applications so as to invite people to register online.
Electronic communication: Service of documents from one side to other has been effectively extended to email communications in order to ensure the acceleration of the process.
Request for a well-known trademark: It is now possible for an applicant to file a request to the registrar for registering its trademark as a well-known one by filing an application with the required
Specific provision for sound marks: Though the earlier rules recognized non-conventional trademarks like the smell, sound etc. however the new rules have specific criteria for sound marks and a sample of it has to be submitted in an MP3 format to the registrar.
Limitation on adjournments: The whole point of making the new rules was to provide for ways to address the issues in a speedier manner. Thus with regards to any dispute of a trademark maximum 2 adjournments will be granted to any contesting party.