In China, companies and individuals may file a trademark
opposition to contest a preliminarily approved trademark
registration. Once the trademark is preliminarily approved, it will
be publicly announced in the trademark gazette. During the
preliminary approval period, companies and individuals may file an
objection application. If successful, the trademark will not be
registered. For companies, the trademark opposition can be utilised
to stop malicious trademark registrations of its own trademarks.
Below, we outline the main aspects of trademark opposition in a
Q&A.
1. What is trademark opposition under the Trademark Law of the
People's Republic of China ('Trademark Law')?
According to the Article 33 of the Trademark Law, trademark
opposition refers to the procedure in which any natural person,
legal person, or other organization or institution may file an
opposition application, within a statutory period, against a
designated trademark application which has been
