European trademark application

There are many aspects to consider when filing a trademark application. For example, did you that filing a European trademark application in English and Swedish instead of in English or Spanish, or another big language, will make opposition against your application less likely, and thus increase the chance of having your mark registered! Filing in English and a minor language also minimizes the risk of having to deal with oppositions in other languages than English, which saves you expensive costs of translation.

An application for a European trademark (CTM) is filed with the Office for Harmonization in the Internal Market (the OHIM), located in Alicante, Spain. Any individual or entity can apply for a European trademark, but the application must be filed by a European trademark representative who is authorized to act before the OHIM in trademark matters.

When the CTM application arrives at the OHIM it is first examined to its form. The Office also checks whether the trademark is eligible for protection on absolute grounds. This means that mark cannot be descriptive or non-distinctive for the goods or services for which protection is sought, or for its function. For example, "Furniture" or "Sit" would not be accepted as trademarks for chairs. However, a major difference compared to the process at many national trademark offices is that the OHIM does not examine whether the trademark may be confusingly similar to earlier marks. Instead, it is up to the right-holders of earlier European trademarks to object to later filed marks. Such opposition can be filed during the three-month period when trademarks approved by OHIM are published in the European trademark periodical, the CTM Bulletin.

According to the OHIM, the entire procedure for the registration of a European trademark (CTM) takes about 12-18 months if no oppositions are filed. Our experience is that most CTMs are registered within 10-15 months from the application date. When registered, the European trademark will be in effect for ten years, and the mark can be renewed an endless number of times. If the trademark has not been used for a period of five years, it can be challenged and invalidated on the basis of non-use.