Rights in India follow first use, but proving first use without a registration is slow and frequently unsuccessful. A registration converts an argument into a certificate, and creates an asset that can be licensed, assigned, valued in a transaction and relied on during investor diligence. Most of the disputes we are asked to repair would have cost a fraction to prevent.
Work in this practice is delivered under the same operating standard that applies across the firm. The compliance calendar is mapped at the outset and driven by us, positions involving judgement are documented with the authority relied upon at the time they are taken, and nothing is filed or issued without an independent internal review by someone other than the preparer.
Where a matter touches another practice area, and most do, it is handled inside the same file rather than referred outward. That is the point of holding these disciplines together.
Common questions
How long does trademark registration take in India?
Where no objection or opposition arises, roughly 12 to 24 months from filing to certificate. You receive the application number within days of filing and can use the TM symbol from that point, so protection effectively begins well before the certificate issues.
We received an examination report. Is the application lost?
Usually not. Most reports raise objections under Section 9 or Section 11 that can be answered with evidence of use, a distinctiveness argument or a limitation of the specification. The reply must be filed within 30 days, so the timing matters more than the objection itself.
Other practice areas
Direct Tax Advisory
Corporate and personal direct tax managed as a continuous cycle rather than a year end scramble. We prepare the computation, make the filing, and defend the position taken.
IIInternational Taxation and Transfer Pricing
For groups whose value crosses a border, exposure is decided by structure long before it is decided by filing. We advise at the structuring stage and defend the position afterwards.
IIIGST and Indirect Tax
GST rewards businesses that reconcile continuously and penalises those that reconcile annually. We run it as a monthly discipline with the audit trail built as we go.
Speak to the trademark and ip practice
Tell us what is outstanding and what deadline you are working to. We will tell you what needs to happen and in what order.
New Delhi, India 110017