Following our report in regard to the abandonment of thousands of trade mark applications by the Indian Trade Mark Registry, there has been a welcome development this week with the Indian Trade Mark Registry issuing a notice which allows the abandonment order passed by the Registry in March, to be kept in abeyance.
The applicants and their authorised agents who have been affected by the earlier abandonment order, are now given an opportunity to review their abandoned matters and take the necessary action to rectify the situation. The parties now need to file their appropriate responses either via the E-filing services on the Intellectual Property India website (http://ipindia.nic.in/), or through specific email addresses provided by the Registry.
With this positive development, we strongly encourage brand owners to audit their Indian applications and conduct updated status checks as soon as possible. This will enable clients to determine the best strategy to adopt so as to ensure their applications are placed on the right track with the Registry. Please don’t hesitate to contact us if we can be of assistance with your trade mark audits and status checks.