There are two categories of parties who may file a trademark opposition: an opposition based on relative grounds must be filed by a prior rights holder or an interested party, while an opposition based on absolute grounds may be filed by any entity or individual.
Standing Requirements for Relative Grounds
Under Article 33 of the Trademark Law, a prior rights holder or an interested party who believes that a trademark published in a preliminary approval announcement infringes its prior rights may file an opposition. Typical parties include:
- The owner of a prior registered trademark who believes the new application constitutes a similar trademark on similar goods to its prior trademark;
- The owner of a well-known trademark claiming cross-class protection;
- The owner of prior rights such as copyright, design patent rights, name rights, portrait rights, or trade name rights;
- A principal or represented party opposing squatting by its agent or representative (Article 15);
- A user whose trademark has been squatted and who has a contractual or business relationship with the opposed party (Article 15(2) and Article 32).
Interested parties generally refer to those with a direct interest in the outcome of the case, such as licensees of the above rights and lawful heirs.
Standing Requirements for Absolute Grounds
An opposition based on absolute grounds—such as the trademark violating the prohibited-sign provisions (e.g., being deceptive or detrimental to socialist morality or customs), lacking distinctive features, or being registered by fraudulent or other improper means—carries no standing requirement; anyone may file.
Practical Tips
The choice of standing directly affects which statutory provisions you may invoke. If you are a prior trademark rights holder, it is advisable to claim both the applicable relative grounds and absolute grounds to broaden the attack; ineligible standing will cause the corresponding grounds not to be examined, so confirm your rights basis and identity before filing.
If you are unsure about the above issues, you may first handle an opposition defense on MyTMBee and act after a registered agent has provided an analysis.