Trademark Office of State Administration for Industry and Commerce first refused and ruled that the trademarkis not approved to register in China. However, our client has successfully got the approval of the protection of this international registration for the trademark through a review examination by the Trademark Review and Adjudication Board and is able to get its trademark exclusive rights in China.

Brief information about the case:

Our English client's company filed a registration for the trademark in China. However, the Chinese Trademark Office rejected the said trademark application on the reason that there is a prior national mark, which is similar to the earlier mark on its sign and goods.

Then we represented our client and filed a review request for the trademark refusal before the Trademark Review and Adjudication Board. In the review, we present some print out pages selected from the Chinese version of applicant website, to emphasize that the captioned trademarks are not similar with the cited trademarks in their appearances, pronunciations; and meanings. Thus, the obvious differences will not create confusion within the public and the captioned trademark is related to the trade name of the applicant. It has been used for a long time and is conform to the business tradition and has won high reputation worldwide through long time use.

The Trademark Review and Adjudication Board decided that our grounds were tenable and approved the examination of the trademark. Thereby, our Chinese client has cleared the obstacle of trademark registration in China.

Attorney's comments:

In this case, when filing a trademark registration in China, the applicant may have a chance to get a refusal due to that there might has been a similar prior trademark applied to registered or registered. Therefore, in addition to explain the differences between the trademark application and the prior trademark, it is also recommended to provide a strong argument along with some evidence material to better stress the actual use and reputation. These together, will help to present a higher perspective that how the trademark is unique and related to it target market and designated goods.