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What are the most common reasons for opposing a trademark?

Founder & Trademark Attorney

Likelihood of confusion is by far the most common ground. An existing trademark holder opposes an application because the applied-for mark is confusingly similar to their earlier mark and covers the same or related goods or services. The opposition asserts that registration would harm their existing rights by creating consumer confusion about the source of the goods.

Other common grounds include prior unregistered use (in first-to-use jurisdictions), well-known mark status (where the earlier mark's reputation extends protection beyond its registered classes), descriptiveness, bad faith, and in the EU, relative grounds such as earlier rights in a trade name or copyright.

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