Registration of an EU trademark is done through OHIM in Spain. The process includes examination, publication, and registration. A registered EU trademark grants exclusive rights in all 27 member countries. OHIM is the only organization that can grant trade mark status throughout the EU.
Registration of a European Union (EU) trade mark is done through the Office for Harmonization in the Internal Market (OHIM) in Spain. The application process consists of three parts: examination, publication and registration. Once the third stage is completed, a person or company has exclusive rights to that EU trade mark in all 27 EU member countries.
Often called a logo, a person or organization may have a unique way of writing text or use a symbol to establish or protect brand identity. When this unique mark is registered as a trademark, rights are granted that allow for exclusive use by a particular entity. Similar to the US Patent and Trademark Office, OHIM is the organization within the EU that examines applications and considers them registered or unregistered EU trademarks, depending on the results of their investigation.
The first step of the application process is the examination, also called review. The potential EU trade mark is investigated to find out if there is a legitimate case for granting exclusive rights to a particular party. If the results of the review are positive, the next step is publication of the application. Once the application has been published, any interested party who objects to the registration is given three months to file an objection. The final stage, which includes any opposition proceedings, is called registration.
A registered EU trade mark has rights in all 27 member countries and you have to apply for the right to use it in the whole geographic market. If an entity wishes to register a trademark only within a specific country or region, a national trademark may be a better option. All or most EU countries have government agencies that will only register a trademark within their borders.
The EU trademark is the only process that will ensure legal protection of the trademark in the EU, so that if another person or business uses a registered design, the trademark owner has the right to sue for damages. OHIM is the only organization that can grant trade mark status throughout the EU. OHIM is governed by the Court of Justice of the European Union.
There is no requirement to file for trademark status to use a company name or logo; it just won’t be legally protected. The mark can be used at any time and throughout the approval process. There is, however, an obligation to use an EU trade mark within five years of registration. If the trademark is not used within the established period, it can be suspended or revoked.
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