United Kingdom Trade Mark Registration

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United Kingdom trade mark is under protection by United Kingdom trade mark law. The use of United Kingdom trademark is a way for one party to distinguish themselves from another. In the business world, a trade mark provides a product or organization with an identity which cannot be imitated by its competitors.

United Kingdom trade mark is same with others country trademark. It can be a name, word, phrase, logo, symbol, design, image, sound, shape, signature or any combination of these elements. However need to be note that it is "trade mark" in UK law, the term as defined under the Trade Marks Act 1994 (UK) not "trademark", as stated in trademark laws of other countries, for example the US.

UK Trade Mark Search

From the UK trade mark search report, you are able to know is there any identical mark or similar mark found. If there are any identical marks, and these marks are currently registered for goods/services identical/similar to the ones you want to cover then these marks could be problematic. It is advisable to proceed search before proceed UK Trade Mark application.

Filing a UK Trade Mark Application

Filing a UK Trade Mark Application is actually quite easy and you need to get three main things correct before submit to United Kingdom Intellectual Property Office (UKIPO):

1. Trade Mark- You can’t change the mark once you’ve filed the application, so make sure you get it correct. If the mark is a word or words then if you write the mark all in uppercase the mark will be considered to cover any style of writing the word(s).

2. The specification of goods/services-You can’t broaden of the specification of goods/services after filing the application, so make sure you want to put everything in that you want to cover.

3. The name and address of the applicant- Although you can correct this after filing it’s easier if you get this right at the outset. You can choose to fill the UK trade mark application under company name (it needs to have a legal personality such as a limited company) or in your name.

UK Trade Mark Examination

When the UK trade mark examination report is issued, it will either say there are no conflicting marks and the application is to proceed to publication, or it will list all the UK and Community trademark registrations/applications that the Examiner thinks are identical or confusingly similar and cover identical/similar goods/services. The Examiner will also provide an opinion on whether the mark is inherently registrable or not.

The Examiner is not always right, and you can file arguments against the Examiner’s opinion. There are a number of other tactics for overcoming objections in examination reports. Examiner will not reject the application on the basis of marks cited in the examination report, but if the application is allowed to proceed without the cited marks being waived the Examiner will in some instances write to the owners of the cited marks inviting them to oppose your application.

UK Trade Mark Registration and Renewal

If no opposition(s) are filed (or the application is not successfully opposed in its entirety), then the UK trade mark application will proceed to grant and a certificate of registration will be issued. A UK trade mark application can be granted in as little as six months if no objections are raised by the Registry on examination and no oppositions are filed. A UK registration lasts initially for ten years from the filing date. The duration of the UK trade mark registration may be extended indefinitely, although a registration would become vulnerable to revocation, in whole or in part, if the mark is not used on the goods or services specified in the registration for a continuous period of five years.