TRADE MARK FILING / PORTFOLIO

A brand's value sits in its marks: the name, the logo, the get-up and, increasingly, colour, shape and sound. Trademark registration in India under the Trade Marks Act, 1999 turns that value into an enforceable exclusive right. How strong the right is depends on early decisions: whether the mark was cleared before adoption, how the specification was framed, which jurisdictions were secured, and whether the portfolio is maintained and policed afterwards. We design and manage trademark portfolios for emerging brands and established multinationals, in India and through the Madrid system.

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Our Trademark Services

• Clearance searches assessing availability and registrability before a brand is adopted

• Filing strategy across mark type (word, device, label, shape, colour, sound), class, and specification of goods and services

• Filings in India and abroad, including international registrations under the Madrid Protocol

• Examination responses and hearings before the Trade Marks Registry

• Oppositions, both against conflicting marks and in defence of your applications

• Portfolio management, including watch services, renewals, recordals of assignments and changes, and portfolio audits

• Licensing and commercialisation, including franchise and co-branding arrangements

• Enforcement, from cease-and-desist notices to infringement and passing off actions

 

Our Approach

1. Clearance before adoption. Identical and confusingly similar marks are found before you commit to a brand, packaging or launch campaign.

2. Specifications drafted for the business plan. Classes, descriptions of goods and services, and jurisdictions are framed around current products and realistic expansion, avoiding both gaps in cover and overreach that invites challenge.

3. Prosecution through to registration. Objections are met with evidence of distinctiveness or reputation, and contested matters are carried through hearings and oppositions.

4. Ongoing stewardship. Renewals are docketed, conflicting filings are caught by watch services in time to oppose, and portfolios are audited as the business changes.

 

Why Choose Khurana & Khurana for Trademarks

• Depth across sectors since 2007. We have built and defended portfolios for Indian and global brands in FMCG, telecom, fashion and technology.

• Portfolios built to be enforced. Close coordination with our IP litigation and anti-counterfeiting teams means filings anticipate the evidence a court will need.

• One point of control worldwide. Madrid filings and our network of foreign associates let multinational portfolios be administered, renewed and reported through one firm.

 

Key Information

Documents for trademark filing in India

• Applicant's name, address and legal status

• Representation of the mark and its type (word, device, label or other)

• Class and specification of goods or services

• Date of first use in India, or a statement that the mark is proposed to be used (with a supporting affidavit and evidence where use is claimed)

• Power of attorney, where filed through an agent

 

From filing to registration

1. Examination: the Registry checks formalities and whether the mark should be refused on absolute or relative grounds.

2. Response: objections in the examination report must be answered within one month. An unanswered application can be treated as abandoned.

3. Hearing: if objections remain, the matter is listed for a hearing before the Registrar.

4. Advertisement: accepted marks are published in the Trade Marks Journal.

5. Opposition: any person may oppose within four months of advertisement. The applicant files a counter-statement, both parties file evidence, and the matter is heard.

6. Registration: if there is no opposition, or the opposition fails, the mark is registered.

 

Renewal

A registration lasts ten years and can be renewed indefinitely for further ten-year periods. The renewal request can be filed up to one year before expiry.

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Launching a new brand?

Before you commit to a name, logo or packaging, reach out to us at info@khuranaandkhurana.com and let us check that it is available and registrable.