Trademark application: search first, then file
No registration without a check. The offices do not examine whether someone else already holds an earlier right. That examination remains your task.
We handle filings at the German Patent and Trade Mark Office and at the European Union Intellectual Property Office, from the search through the choice of mark type to the end of the proceedings.
How we proceed
Step 1: Settle sign and mark type
Word, figurative, combined or one of the special types. The choice determines the scope of protection and how easily the mark can later be enforced.
Step 2: Search
Similarity searches in the registers relevant to you, plus an assessment of the collision risk. This is the step the offices do not take for you.
Step 3: Settle goods and services
The classes follow from what you actually do and plan to do. Filing too broadly creates exposure. Filing too narrowly leaves gaps.
Step 4: File and follow through
We conduct the proceedings, answer objections from the office and watch the three-month opposition period after registration.
A new name in the pipeline?
The search costs time and, in case of doubt, saves proceedings.
Request a searchFrequently asked questions
Why is registration alone not enough?
On filing, the offices examine absolute grounds for refusal, such as a lack of distinctiveness or descriptive terms. They do not examine whether an earlier similar mark exists. Anyone filing without a search can hold a registered mark and still receive a warning letter.
How many classes should we file for?
As many as necessary and as few as possible. Every additional class costs fees and widens the surface for attack, because the mark has to be used there as well. We go through your planned business activity with you and derive the classes from it rather than filing broadly as a precaution.
Do we actually have to use the mark?
Once the grace period has run, yes. After that the mark can be cancelled on application for non-use, to the extent it is not genuinely used for the goods and services registered. Filing therefore also involves the question of how use can later be evidenced.