In our previous article on how to deal with trademark rejection, we briefly mentioned how to deal with trademark rejection, and this article explains it in detail.

After receiving the trademark rejection notice, you can submit a trademark rejection review to the Trademark Review and Adjudication Board within 15 days. If you decide not to file a rejection review, the trademark application process will be terminated. Many applicants will ask, can they continue to use a trademark after it is rejected? In other words, will continuing to use a rejected (application) trademark have any adverse consequences?

Two types of institutions

There are two types of institutions that may have adverse consequences for trademark users. One is state agencies, such as the Trademark Office or local industrial and commercial bureaus; the other is the same or Similar trademark rights holders, especially trademark rights holders of trademarks cited in the rejection notice.

Judging from the legislative intent of the trademark system and the provisions of the Trademark Law, except for a very small number of goods (such as human medicines), trademarks on other goods can be used without registration. The purpose of trademark registration is to obtain "trademark exclusive rights" rather than to obtain "trademark use rights." Therefore, if the rejected trademark continues to be used, the first type of organization will not have adverse consequences for the trademark user.

Will the second type of organization have adverse consequences for applicants who continue to use the trademark? It cannot be generalized. The first thing to understand is the difference between trademark review and trademark infringement.

Responsible agencies are different

Trademark applications across the country are reviewed by the Trademark Office of the State Administration for Industry and Commerce. Those who are not satisfied with the decision of the Trademark Office will submit a trademark rejection review to the Trademark Review and Adjudication Board. Although there are now Guangzhou, Shanghai and Chongqing Trademark Examination Collaboration Centers, these centers are managed by the State Trademark Office and conduct examinations according to unified trademark examination standards.

The first-instance cases of trademark infringement are under the jurisdiction of the intermediate people's courts and above and the basic people's courts designated by the Supreme Court. Currently, according to this standard, hundreds of courts across the country have the authority to hear trademark infringement cases.

Whether a trademark can be registered and whether a trademark is infringed are judged by two national agencies in different systems according to two different standards. To put it simply, each case has its own trial.

The above means that if a trademark is rejected, can it continue to be used? answer. In short, the soul of a trademark lies in its use. A trademark is not equal to a trademark logo, but a trademark logo plus trademark use. Once you have this understanding, you will not be wrong if you make specific judgments on individual cases.