Is the letter of protest in pending trademark application available in Vietnam? | Is the letter of protest in pending trademark application available in Vietnam

Is the letter of protest in pending trademark application available in Vietnam?

A letter of protest, like in the US for example, is an informal procedure that allows third parties to bring to the attention of the USPTO evidence bearing on the registrability of a mark provided that the trademark as filed with the USPTO subject to a letter of protest must be still pending and is intended to aid in examination without causing undue delay and without compromising the integrity and objectivity of the ex parte examination process[1]

In Vietnam, no mechanism of letter of protest is available in support of the ex parte trademark examination by the National Office of Intellectual Property of Vietnam (NOIP). However, since trademark opposition under the laws of Vietnam is a legal procedure for settling an inter partes dispute thereby allows any third party to submit his/her written objections to the NOIP requesting not to grant protection for another person’s trademark applied for registration[2], the letter of protest in the form of opposition by third party without standing as interested third party or aggrieved third party against a pending trademark is practically available.

Below is a practical example relating to the pending trademark applied for registration of Nam Đế[3] represented by Bross & Partners that is opposed by third party without standing as the interested third party:

Opposed Mark

Grounds for Protest

NAM ĐẾ

App. No. 4-2016-00854

Class 30: powdered coffee, instant coffee, tea (tea)

Class 43: restaurants, hotels, cafeteria, café pub

The opposed mark is accused of being identical with or confusingly similar to real names, aliases, pseudonyms or images of leaders, national heroes or famous personalities of Vietnam or foreign countries. (Section 73(3) of the IP Law[4])

Bross & Partners already submitted a counter-opposition against the above letter of protest-typed opposition, pending the NOIP’s settlement of opposition and would later report for your information.

Bross & Partners is rich in experience in handling trademark opposition as well as trademark counter-opposition in Vietnam. Should you have any query, please contact us at vinh@bross.vn or 84-903 287 057.

Bross & Partners, a renowned and qualified Patent, Design, Trademark and Copyright agent of Vietnam, constantly ranked and recommended by the Managing Intellectual Property (MIP), World Trademark Review (WTR), Legal 500 Asia Pacific, AsiaLaw Profiles, Asia IP and Asian Legal Business, is providing clients all over the world with the reliable, affordable contentious and non-contentious IP services including enforcement, anti-counterfeiting, litigation regarding trademark, trade name, industrial design, patent, copyright and domain name.

[1] Source: https://www.uspto.gov/trademark/trademark-updates-and-announcements/letter-protest-practice-tip

[2] Our all-inclusive questions and answers in the form of Trademark Comparative Guide published on Mondaq can be found at: http://www.mondaq.com/article.asp?articleid=788902. Or to understand in full the practices and laws of trademark opposition in Vietnam, please view our article “Procedures, deadline and legal grounds for the opposition against a trademark (brand name) applied for registration in Vietnam” from the link: http://bross.vn/newsletter/ip-news-update/Procedures-deadline-and-legal-grounds-for-the-opposition--against-a-trademark-brand-name-applied-for-registration-in-Vietnam

[3] According to the Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/L%C3%BD_Nam_%C4%90%E1%BA%BF, Lý Nam Đế (chữ Hán: 李南帝, 17 October 503 – 13 April 548) was a Vietnamese monarch and the founder of Vạn Xuân. ruling between 544-8 and the founder of the Early Lý Dynasty

[4] Article 73 of the IP Law. Signs ineligible for protection as trademarks

The following marks shall be ineligible for protection as trademarks:

3. Signs identical with or confusingly similar to real names, aliases, pseudonyms or images of leaders,

national heroes or famous personalities of Vietnam or foreign countries.