Good News! The Chinese Trademark Office Is Introducing Seven New Services For Trademark Applications.

6 June, 2016

 

Today expert Rainy Liu from Beijing Lawconstant shares with us some good  news from the Chinese Trade Mark Office. Rainy is the director of Beijing Lawconstant. Owing to her master degree of Intellectual Property Law in United Kingdom, Rainy has specialised in trademark-related work in China since 2004. She has handled a number of trademark, copyright, domain names cases. To her clients, she is not a trademark attorney only but also a business advisor for the brand management.

 

As of the 24 March 2016, the Chinese Trademark Office will Issue a new ‘Guide to Common Questions for Trademark Applications’ which will address inquiries relating to the new Chinese Trademark Law.

No longer require notarisation of certified documents for trademark applications including; the image or name of celebrities, trademark assignment, revocation and correction of the name or address of foreign applicants.

 

Provide guidelines and explanations detailing appropriate responses to ‘official actions’.

 

Allow the use of one set of evidence for several oppositions. If evidence for a case is exactly the same as that of another, and all the evidence has been filed for the first opposition, you do not need to repeat the filings.  However it is important to take note of the initial application number or trademark opposition filing used in the first opposition case.

 

Introduce combined examinations if; both of the parties are the same, the opposed marks are the same, the evidence is shared in use or both of the parties file oppositions against each other. If one party believes it has reasonable grounds to do so, it could request a combined examination, and the Trade Mark Office (TMO) may accept if the requirements are satisfied.

 

Allow individual parties to help facilitate the trademark application process. For trademark changes, assignments and renewal applications, if the applicant has urgent or important grounds to facilitate the examination, it could file the written request and related documents. If the TMO is satisfied with the inquiries, it may shorten the examination procedure.

Add “Notification of Return of the Letters” online to the attorneys to follow up on the development of cases.