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Trademark Registration

Trademark Registration in Pakistan

Registration of a trademark is the process of registering it with the government. As long as the requisite form i.e. the FORM-30 has not already been submitted/filed by anyone else before submission of your trademark registration request under section 3, the trademark application for an individual is filed along with an official fee to be paid in the form of a challan, which can also be downloaded from the IPO website.
During the trademark application process, you must complete some formalities. A trademark is published for opposition after it has been filed within four months of its date of filing. The reason for this is to protect your trademark from being similar or identical to other people. The TMR will issue a trademark registration certificate for your trademark if no oppositions are received after publication, which can be used as evidence against infringements under section 38(a) of Trademark Ordinance 2001 (as amended).

What is the purpose of Trademark Registration?

Trademarks identify and differentiate the goods or services of one party from those of another. The trademark can take the form of a word, a symbol, an image, or a design. Among the different ways that trademarks can be represented are through words, names, symbols, and images. Trademarks must be distinctive to be successful. Unless your product is distinctive enough, no one will be able to distinguish it from others, so it will lose all of its impacts!

There are several reasons why you need a trademark certificate:

  • As proof that you are using a trademark;
  • It is proof of ownership;
  • You are protected by intellectual property rights;
  • It verifies your rights;
  • It protects you against third-party infringement;
  • It provides relevant information about your rights.

What makes a Trademark unique?

A trademark needs to be distinctive to be effective. They won’t have any effect if they aren’t distinctive enough, as nobody will be able to distinguish them from other trademarks.  

You cannot register a trademark without a trademark certificate. The trademark certificate serves to identify your intellectual property.

Advantages of a Trademark

There are several advantages of a trademark, as stated below:

  • Exclusive Rights
  • Builds trust and goodwill.
  • Differentiates Product
  • Recognition of product’s quality
  • Creation of an Asset
  • Use of ® symbol
  • Protection against infringement
  • Protection for 10 Years at low cost
  • Global Trademark Registration
  • Attract Human Resources

Should every company require a Trademark Registration?

In Pakistan, if you have a business and plan to register a trademark, you should know that trademarks are an integral part of any successful company

Your brand identity helps distinguish your products from your competitors. We will discuss the Trademark Registry (TMR) in this blog post so that you can register a trademark in Pakistan. Additionally, we will discuss how to ensure that your trademark is unique enough so that it will be successful.

Trademarks identify and distinguish the goods and services of one party from those of another. Trademarks may take the form of words, symbols, images, or designs.

The Trademark Ordinance, 2001

Under the Trademark Ordinance 2001, anyone can acquire a trademark, provided they comply with the regulations. This organization serves as an administrative body for the Intellectual Property Organization of Pakistan (IPO-Pakistan), processing trademark applications and reserving the right to grant trademarks. Trademark Registry (TMR) is an organizational body under the IPO-Pakistan.

A Wordmark as a Trademark

Wordmarks are trademarks that contain words, letters, and numerals within their representations, such as “Coca-Cola” under class 30 of the Trademark Registry (TMR). It’s usually better to get a trademark if your product name lacks any distinctive features. The reason for this is that they are simpler to register, but they also come with their own set of disadvantages. Some well-known trademarks include Google, Facebook, Ferrari, Baywatch, etc. Sound marks, on the other hand, are trademarks that derive their existence exclusively from their original sound. Nokia ringtones cannot be described with words or images! There is no easy way to protect sound marks by law, so it can be more challenging to trademark this one.

A Device Trademark

The Nike Swoosh logo is an example of a device trademark, which consists of a pattern or shape that cannot be portrayed with words, letters, or numbers. It belongs to International Class 16 and National Class 25 in Pakistan. A design mark is easier than a wordmark, but more difficult than other types of trademarks because there are no limitations to what you can come up with. You will have to be creative if you want to create something unique enough to stand out among the crowd.

Collective Trademark

Collective trademarks are those in which the trademark rights are owned by a group of individuals or organizations to prevent infringement. It is only possible to register collective trademarks under class 45 of the Trademark Registry (TMR).

Trademark Registration

Trademarks identify and distinguish the goods and services of one party from those of another. Trademarks may take the form of words, symbols, images, or designs.

An individual or a company needs to comply with the rules and regulations of the Trademark Ordinance 2001 before they can acquire a trademark. As an authorized body of the Intellectual Property Organization of Pakistan (IPO-Pakistan), the Trademark Registry (TMR) processes trademark applications and has the power to grant trademarks. It has jurisdiction over trademarks across the entire country since it is a federal government body.

Role of Trademark Registry (TMR)

It was through the TMR that the importance of trademarks was made known to the masses, especially business owners. 

In light of The Trademark Ordinance 2001, this law encourages entrepreneurs to register their trademarks so that they would be able to continue their business with a secured identity without having to worry about any conflicts with anyone else.

An IPO-registered trademark is registered with the Trademark Registry (TMR), which has offices in Karachi, Lahore, and Islamabad.

Who is entitled to a Trademark Registration in Pakistan?

Anyone with a business can register a trademark. Applicants may be the owner/proprietor, a partner, a corporation, a non-profit organization, or a society.

Documents Required for Trademark Registration in Pakistan:

  •  The desired trademark’s name, symbol, image, or design
  •  If the applicant is a company, not-for-profit organization/trust or a society (owner/proprietor, partner, etc.) give the company name and address.
  •  The address of the trademark applicant
  •  Trademarks that represent goods and services
  •  An explanation of the type of business the applicant owns (service provider, merchant, wholesaler, manufacturer, retailer)
  •  The Power of Attorney for the agent who would file the trademark application on the applicant’s behalf.

Trademark services by Taxocrate!

With Taxocrate’s team of experienced trademark attorneys in Karachi, Islamabad and Rawalpindi, you can rest assured that all of your business and product trademark registration needs will be taken care of.

Please feel free to contact us if you are interested in learning more about applying for trademarks and other intellectual property rights.

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