[Direct answer]The rejection of a trademark registration is not the end. The statutory remedy is to request a review of the rejection: According to Article 34 of the Trademark Law of the People's Republic of China, the applicant may request a review within 15 days from the date of receipt of the rejection notice, and the review department shall make a decision within nine months (with the possibility of a three-month extension under special circumstances); if the applicant disagrees with the review decision, he/she may also file a lawsuit with the people's court within 30 days from the date of receipt of the notice. The rejection can be divided into two categories: absolute grounds (prohibited marks, lack of distinctiveness) and relative grounds (similarity to a prior trademark). For the rejection due to similarity, strategies such as comparative demonstration and removing prior obstacles to the trademark can be used to strive for approval. For more intellectual property services, please feel free to consult us.Intellectual property protection and corporate legal services.

I. Problem background and typical scenarios

The number of trademark applications has been increasing year by year, but the rejection rate remains high. It's a common situation for enterprises to receive a "Trademark Rejection Notice". Typical scenarios include: the trademark application being rejected because it is deemed similar to a previously registered or preliminarily approved trademark; the trademark's text or graphics involving prohibited symbols or lacking distinctiveness; the application covering multiple product or service categories, with only some groups being rejected; and the rejection notice being delivered electronically, but the enterprise failing to check it in time, leading to a looming deadline. When faced with a rejection, enterprises often hesitate between letting the application lapse, renaming and resubmitting, and appealing the rejection: giving up directly means losing the investment in earlier design and promotion; blindly resubmitting may run into the same obstacle again; and applying for review requires organizing evidence and arguments item by item against the rejection reasons, which requires high professional expertise.

II. Key points of dispute

  • The criteria for determining similarity: In the review process, we follow the method of combining isolation comparison, overall comparison, and comparison of main parts, based on the general attention of the relevant public. The distinctiveness and popularity of the cited trademark, as well as the similarity of the goods or services, will all affect the conclusion. Judging the differences based solely on subjective feelings is often inaccurate.
  • The boundary of distinctiveness: logos that directly describe the function, use, or quality of products lack distinctiveness, but suggestive or fanciful logos can usually be registered. According to Article 11, Paragraph 2 of the Trademark Law of the People's Republic of China, if a logo acquires distinctive features through use and is easy to identify, it can also be registered as a trademark. Whether the evidence of use is sufficient is the key factor.
  • Removing preliminary obstacles: If the cited trademark has not been used for three consecutive years without a valid reason, any unit or individual may apply for its revocation in accordance with Article 49 Paragraph 2; if the registered cited trademark meets the conditions for invalidation, it may be declared invalid; or it may negotiate coexistence with the cited trademark right holder or acquire it by assignment, thus clearing the obstacles for review or re-application.
  • The rigidity of the procedural deadlines: The 15-day review period starts from the date of receipt of the notice, and the right to review will be lost if the deadline is exceeded; the 30-day litigation period for appealing against the review decision cannot be delayed either. The two deadlines combined determine the overall pace of the process.

III. Professional analysis by Henglue Law Firm

The core of a review of a rejection decision is to break down the reasons for the rejection into specific legal provisions and then respond to each item with evidence. In the case of a rejection due to similarity, Henglue Lawyers usually start with the textual composition, pronunciation, and meaning of the logo, as well as its overall appearance, to demonstrate clear differences in pronunciation and meaning, and combine this with evidence of the trademark's limited popularity and the applicant's actual use and promotion of the trademark to show that relevant audiences will not be confused. In the case of a rejection due to distinctiveness, Henglue Lawyers focus on evidence such as sales contracts, invoices, advertising campaigns, and industry evaluations to demonstrate that the logo has established a stable correspondence with the applicant. When directly reviewing a case before the pre-existing obstacles are cleared, the success rate is often limited, so it's more prudent to evaluate and combine paths such as revocation, invalidation, and assignment. Take a trademark infringement and unfair competition dispute handled by Henglue Lawyers as an example: A well-known paper company claimed that the defendant's logo imitated its well-known trademark and sought compensation of 980,000 yuan. However, the logo used by the defendant originated from a legitimate authorization of a third-party registered trademark. Henglue Lawyers defended against the claim by highlighting the overall readability differences of the logo, the legitimate authorization source, and the severity of the infringement. The court ultimately found trademark infringement but rejected the claim of unfair competition. Given the short usage period and limited scale of the defendant's business, the court awarded compensation of 60,000 yuan, which was more than 90% lower than the claimed amount. This case shares the same logic of similarity judgment with the review of a rejection decision - overall observation, isolated comparison, and reliance on the perception of relevant audiences. The outcome of the same logo in different procedures largely depends on the comparative argumentation and evidence organization. The management of a company's trademark authorization chain and related contracts can be combined with this.Business and contract dispute resolution services for enterprisesLet's sort things out together.

IV. Practical suggestions and legal basis

At the legal basis level: Article 34 of the Trademark Law of the People's Republic of China (the amended version implemented on November 1, 2019) establishes the review procedure for rejection, including a 15-day application period, a 9-month review period (which can be extended by three months with approval), and a 30-day period for litigation remedies; Articles 10 and 11 respectively stipulate that prohibited marks and marks lacking distinctiveness are not eligible for registration, while Article 11 Paragraph 2 also establishes rules for obtaining distinctiveness; Article 30 provides for rejection when the trademark is identical or similar to a trademark previously registered or preliminarily approved by others; Article 49 Paragraph 2 stipulates that if a registered trademark is not used for three consecutive years without justifiable reasons, any unit or individual may apply for its cancellation. At the practical advice level: After receiving the rejection notice, immediately check the date of delivery and calculate the time limit; retrieve the registration status, use situation, and renewal records of the cited trademark to assess the difficulty of eliminating conflicts; if some goods or services are rejected, only apply for review for the rejected parts, and continue with the procedures for the unrejected parts; plan parallel actions such as review, re-application, and cancellation of three-year unuse to avoid time limit delays; file review evidence according to three lines: trademark use, promotion, and sales. For trademark layout and overall compliance arrangements, consult a professional for advice.Special services and other case servicesTeam.

5. Henglue Law Firm's Reminder

The 15-day review period from the date of receipt of the rejection notice is a binding requirement. If the deadline is exceeded, the trademark can only be relisted and reapplied for, and the brand's investment may be interrupted in the meantime. Whether to review and how to review depend on the type of rejection reason, the status of the cited trademark, and the availability of evidence of use. It is crucial not to blindly resubmit the application without evaluating the situation, as this may lead to a disruption of the trademark asset. During the review period, the trademark can still be used, but the registration mark cannot be displayed. It is important to keep evidence during use, which not only serves to support the review but also provides a basis for potential infringement defense in the future. This case is handled by Beijing Henglu Law Firm.Liu YuanyuanAttorney (Practice Certificate No.: 11101202011201094, subject to the document issued by the judicial administrative organ). If your trademark has been rejected, it is recommended that you consult a professional attorney as soon as possible within the time limit to formulate a review and layout plan.

Q1: Can I still apply for a review after more than 15 days since the trademark was rejected?

In principle, it is not allowed. According to Article 34 of the Trademark Law of the People's Republic of China, the 15-day review period stipulated in the article starts from the date of receipt of the rejection notice, which is a statutory time limit. Applications for review submitted after the deadline are generally not accepted. The practical options after missing the deadline are: adjust the logo or product scope and reapply; check whether the cited trademarks have expired or can be revoked, and reapply after the obstacles are removed; if there are doubts about the service process, check the electronic service records and the announcement of service to confirm whether the starting date is correct. It is recommended that enterprises designate a special person to receive trademark documents and establish a filing system to avoid missing the relief window due to missing notifications.

Q2: Can the trademark continue to be used during the re-examination period?

Yes. During the review period, the trademark has not yet been approved for registration, and its use is not protected by the exclusive right to register a trademark. However, the law does not prohibit actual use; when using it, you should mark it with TM and other unregistered logos, and you are not allowed to use registration marks. There are two points to note: First, the use method should be consistent with the application for the trademark, and the relevant evidence of use can be used to demonstrate the distinctiveness or popularity of the trademark in the review; Second, if the trademark rights holder has registered the trademark earlier, continued use may lead to infringement accusations. You should decide whether to expand the use after a lawyer evaluates the risks, and if necessary, adjust the use geography and product categories to control the risks.

Q3: How long does it take to review and refute the appeal? And what are the approximate costs involved?

The statutory review period is within nine months from the date the review department receives the application, and the period may be extended by three months under special circumstances with approval. If the applicant disagrees with the decision and initiates administrative litigation, the overall period will be extended accordingly, and the actual progress will be subject to the notifications from the review department and the court. As for the fees, they include the official fees paid to the review department and the agency service fees. The official fees are charged per case and the amount is limited. The agency fees depend on the number of rejection reasons, the complexity of the cited trademarks, and the amount of evidence preparation. Most agencies will provide a quote after an assessment. It is recommended to first evaluate the success rate before deciding on the scale of investment.

Q4: What does it mean to partially reject the application? Do all products need to be reviewed again?

Part of the rejection refers to the rejection of a portion of the designated goods or services in the application, while the remaining part enters the subsequent procedure after a preliminary review. In this case, it is only necessary to apply for a review of the rejected goods or services, and the unrejected parts will proceed according to the normal procedure without a full review. In practice, it is necessary to carefully check the rejection list attached to the rejection notice and the group division of the similar goods and services distinction table to determine the relationship between the rejected and retained parts. If the rejected parts are the core business categories, the necessity of reviewing or removing the obstacles first is higher; if they are only marginal categories, it can also be decided whether to give up based on the cost and cycle.

Q5: Are there any other options after the review fails?

Yes. If you are not satisfied with the review decision, you can file an administrative lawsuit with the people's court within 30 days from the date of receipt of the notice, and the court will review the decision being sued. During the litigation stage, you can still provide additional arguments on issues such as similarity comparison and distinctiveness. If the litigation results are unsatisfactory, you can adjust your strategy: modify the logo elements and re-apply; avoid the comparison conclusion of the cited trademark; apply for revocation or invalidation of the cited trademark that constitutes an obstacle and then re-apply; or negotiate with the right holder of the cited trademark for assignment or obtaining a license to use it. Evaluating multiple paths in parallel is more efficient than persisting repeatedly in a single procedure.

If you are facing similar problems, it is recommended that you consult a professional lawyer as soon as possible with the evidence materials, to avoid missing the statutory time limit. →Intellectual property protection legal services·Attorney Liu Yuanyuan·Beijing Henglu Law Firm