A trademark is the distinctive identification that distinguishes your organization, product, or service from the competition. A registered trademark is your company's intellectual property/intangible asset. It protects the time and effort you spend into winning the trust and loyalty of your customers.

The registration gives you the legal right to sue anyone who attempts to mimic your trademark and prevents others from using a similar trademark.

Trademarks are registered in India by –

    • The Controller General of Patents, Designs, and Trademarks of the Indian Ministry of Industry and Commerce.

    • The Trademark Act of 1999 was used to register the trademark. Brand registration gives you the legal right to sue anyone who tries to use your trademark without permission. A person cannot use a trademark that is simlar to one that has already been registered.

Although registering a trademark is not required in order to use it, it adds tremendous value to a firm. When others try to portray their own goods and services as yours by adopting a brand that is similar to or identical to yours, a company's goodwill and image can be harmed. The following are some of the most important advantages of trademark registration:

    • After the trademark is registered, the proprietor has the right to prevent someone from using that trademark that is similar to or identical to his without his prior permission.

    • Creates a correct perception of the product's genuine ownership and quality among the general audience.

    • Because the owner of a registered trademark can sue and recover damages from organizations that infringe on the trademark, it prevents others from copying and using it.

    • A trademark registration reduces the chances of someone else claiming that your trademark infringes on theirs.

    • The right to use the TM emblem is granted to the owner.

    • It serves as a warning to anyone considering filing a similar or identical trade mark in Singapore, as the Singapore trademark office will not register any confusingly similar marks. Additionally, when businesses consider adopting a mark that is similar to yours, your mark will display on the local Trade Marks Register.

A trademark registration is an important practice for protecting a brand/business from unauthorized use and infringement.

The Government of India has simplified the trademark registration system over time to enable entrepreneurs to obtain trademark registration for their brands in a matter of months. The following are the various paperwork needed to register a trademark in India.

Note: Original documents are not required to be submitted throughout the trademark application registration process. The criterion can be met with scanned copies of the original documents.

Individuals and sole proprietorships must provide certain documents.

    • Ideally in black and white, a copy of the suggested logo (which is optional). If the logo is not provided, a trademark application for the word might be filed instead. 

    • Form 48, which has been duly signed. This document serves as an authorization for a Trademark Attorney to file a trademark registration application on the applicant's behalf. 

    • Copy of the individual applicant's or proprietor's identity evidence, such as a passport, Aadhar card, or PAN card. 

    • Copy of the person applicant's or proprietor's address evidence, which may include the most recent electricity bill, phone bill, etc.

Partnership / Company / LLP

The following documents must be submitted by the entrepreneur/applicant in the case of a partnership firm or an LLP:

    • A scanned version of the logo (optional)

    • Duly signed Form- 48

    • Udyog Aadhar Registration Certificate

    • Partnership Deed or the Incorporation Certificate

    • Copy of identity proof of applicant

    • Copy of address proof of signatory/ applicant

The following documents must be submitted by other applicants in a trademark registration.

In order to get trademark registration in India, applicants including those companies that doesn’t have an Udyog Aadhar number, should submit the following documentation.

    • The applicant must provide a copy of the logo.

    • Duly signed Form- 48

    • Partnership Deed or the Incorporation Certificate

    • Copy of identity proof of signatory.

    • The applicant must also provide an address proof.

When a trademark is officially registered, the individual whose name appears on the Brand Registration form as the applicant is considered the brand's owner. Any individual, organization, or limited liability partnership can submit a trademark registration application.

What are the many sorts of trademark units?

Trademarks can be registered in India in a variety of formats, including logo, label, word mark, and device mark. As a result, deciding whether to register the trademark as a word mark or a logo is a tricky one.

A word mark is the simplest of the other potential trademarks, and it represents the brand's name. For example, Jio or Britannia have merely trademarked the word, which is known as a word mark.

The term is self-registered using a word mark. After a trademark for a word mark is registered, the applicant has the absolute right to use and represent the word in any format or font, giving it broader protection that includes exclusive rights to the word as a whole and the ability to describe it in a variety of formats, regardless of style, for all goods and services associated with the mark.

A logo, on the other hand, grants the trademark holder rights to a mix of pictures, words, and design when viewed as a whole. Nike, Adidas, and other brands come to mind. Furthermore, if the business logo is unmistakably recognizable by the public, the applicant may wish to file a trademark for that logo.

Composite Mark for a Logo

A business's brand name usually consists of both words and logos. For example, Jack & Jones (a global garment company) has a complex logo composite mark that includes even the location of its label on the back of their jeans. In such cases, the best strategy to protect intellectual property is to file the trademark as both a word mark and a logo. However, because filing several trademark applications is a costly process, registering the trademark as a word mark is always recommended.

Step 1: Search the internet for a brand name that is "wacky-enough" to be registered as a trademark.

This is simply the quickest and most effective technique for any beginner to obtain a memorable, trendy, and intriguing company name. Choosing a weird and quirky brand name is a smart option because most generic names are already in use. Furthermore, deciding on a name necessitates a quick research procedure to verify that you are not selecting a brand name that is already in use. The best aspect is that you may develop a distinctive brand name for yourself by inventing or coining some words from a combination of generic phrases.

The second step is to prepare a trademark application.

    • For online trademark registration, the following supporting papers must be presented with the application:

    • Proof of Business Registration: An identification proof of the company's directors and an address proof must be supplied based on your registered business (for example, sole proprietorship and so on). In the instance of a sole proprietorship, the proprietor's id evidence, such as a PAN card or an Aadhar card, could be submitted. In the case of businesses, however, the company's address evidence must be submitted.

    • An electronic copy of the trademark.

    • The proposed mark's proof of claim (if applicable) can be utilized in another nation.

    • The applicant should sign a power of attorney.

Step 3: Submitting a trademark registration application

The two methods for filing the registration application are manual filing and e-filing (form TM-A). If you select 'manual filing,' you must personally transport and handover your registration application to the Registrar Office of Trade Marks in major Indian cities such as Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata, Ahmedabad, and Chennai. After then, you must wait at least 15 to 20 days to obtain the acknowledgment of receipt. However, if you use an e-filing system, you will obtain your receipt of acknowledgment on the government website very immediately.

Step 4: Examining the application process for a trademark

After you submit your application, the Registrar of Trademarks will review it to see if you followed all of the criteria and that your brand name is legal. Furthermore, the registration should not be similar to or identical to any existing or pending brands. This is why we recommended that you create a unique brand name!

Step 5: Your brand will be published in the Indian Trade Mark Journals.

The Registrar of Trademarks will publish your brand name in the Indian trademark journal following the examination procedure. This is the most significant element of the trademark registration, and no opposition should be filed within three months of the date of publication, i.e. 90 days (or 120 days in some situations). The Registrar of Trademarks will proceed with the issuance of a Trademark Registration Certificate if there is no opposition.

Step 6: Opposition to a Trademark

If a third party files an opposition within three months of the trademark being published in the trademarks journal, the Registrar of Trademarks will send you a copy of the opposition notice. Within months, you must respond to the opposition notice by filing a counter-statement. The trademark application will be regarded abandoned and rejected if you do not file a rebuttal statement within two months.

If no objection is filed within three months, this procedure will not apply to you, and your brand name will be accepted for issue of a Trademark Registration Certificate.

Step 7: Trademark Opposition Hearing

If there is no trademark opposition, you will not need to take this step.

If a third party opposes your trademark registration and you respond within two months, the Registrar of Trademarks will send a copy of your counter-statement to the third party opposing trademark registration.

You and the third party must both submit evidence in support of your case. Following the submission of evidence, the Registrar will hold a hearing for you and the third party. The Registrar will issue an order accepting or rejecting the trademark application after hearing both parties and examining the facts.

Step 8: The issuance of the trademark registration certificate

If no objection is filed within the 90-day period, the Registrar will accept your trademark application, or if your trademark application is accepted after a trademark opposition hearing. Wow! And the Registrar will issue the Registration Certificate with the Trademark Registry seal, which will be the greatest moment for you.

You can use the registered trademark symbol (®) with your brand name immediately after receiving your certificate.

As a result of this blog article, we believe that even a novice can comprehend everything about developing a brand name and effectively registering it.

    1 Is it possible for overseas applicants to register their trademarks in India?

An international trademark application may be filed through the applicant's trademark office under the Madrid Protocol (the Madrid Agreement Concerning the International Registration of Marks, dated 1891, which entered into force on December 1, 1995, and went into effect on April 1, 1996) The Office of Origin is another name for this trademark office. The application is received by the Office of Origin, which subsequently sends it to the WIPO.

    2 What is the definition of a trademark class?

In total goods and other services are divided into 45 categories by the Trademark Registry. Each class has a different set of goods and services, and you must identify which class(es) you're marketing on your trademark application. To register and protect the trademark, only those classes would be used.

    3 What types of trademark applications are most frequently rejected?

If your trademark is identical to an existing application, might be offensive to religious emotions, involves geographical names, or contains common words, it should be rejected. If it is likely to cause confusion, it will also be rejected.

    4 What if my trademark is already registered but in a different category?

You're still in luck if your brand name has already been registered, but under a different class. Your application is likely to be approved unless the brand is too well-known (such as McDonald's or Fiat).

    5 What if someone holds a trademark on a similar term?

You can't seem to get the word out, but it's not all doom and gloom. Instead, you may create a distinctive logo for your company that includes the name. So there is a way out, however it is preferable to have a distinctive name.

    6 Is it necessary for me to file the trademark in my own name?

Many start-up founders register it in their personal names, whereas huge corporations choose to register it in the company's name. This is because a startup's future is never certain. The trademark would be valid regardless of the state of the firm if it was owned by the founder. In this scenario, however, a trademark license agreement is required.

    7 How long will it take for my trademark to be approved?

The approval of your trademark can take anything from 6 months to a year.

    8 Is it possible to transfer a trademark to someone else?

A trademark can be passed down from one person to the next. The transfer processing cost will vary depending on the state of the mark.

    9 In India, how much does it cost to trademark and register a company's name and logo?

For each type of use, the government fees for filing an online application for trademark registration are Rs. 4500/- for small businesses and Rs. 9000/- for large businesses.

10.What does it indicate when my trademark application is marked as "Objected"?

When the Examiner raises certain concerns about the trademark's registrability, the status changes to "Objected."