Changes To Extension Of Time Requests In Canadian Trademark Examination

On January 17, 2020, the Canadian Intellectual Property Office (CIPO) issued a new Practice Notice detailing changes to extension of time requests for responding to examiner’s reports. This is the first Practice Notice issued by CIPO since the amendments to Canada’s Trademarks Act came into force last June.

Under the previous practice, an applicant was generally entitled to one extension of time, up to a maximum of six months, to respond to an examiner’s report so long as the request was ‘justified’ with a reason. Under the new practice, exceptional circumstances will be required to justify any request for an extension of time for any Examiner’s reports issued on or after January 17, 2020.