What does trademark decision Opposition Sustained mean?

To answer this question, you should understand all parts of it. First…

To be successful in business, the right image has to be developed for sending the right message to the consumers. Therefore, every business has to develop a unique identity known as “Trademark.” The trademark could be a word, phrase, or logo that can actively identify the source of goods or services. After all, every trademark is protected by Trademark law.

Trademark law does not only protect the commercial identities of businesses but also their brands by discouraging other businesses from adopting a similar or a “confusingly similar” name or logo. The goal of Trademark Law is to avoid confusion so that consumers can easily identify the producers of goods and services.

There are various decisions in Trademark Law but the one to be discussed in this article is what does trademark decision Opposition Sustained mean?

What is Trademark Opposition?

A trademark opposition is an objection proceeding (Notice of Opposition) by a party to prevent the registration of a pending trademark application by another party. The objecting party is the “Opponent” or “Opposer”, and the owner of the opposed application is the “Applicant”.

So What Does Trademark Decision Opposition Sustained Mean?

“Opposition sustained means the opposed application is granted. This implies that the trademark registration application is refused; as a result, the application becomes abandoned.”

Common Grounds for Trademark Decision Opposition Sustained

1. Likelihood of confusion: The likelihood that the pending trademark registration will cause confusion in the market is the primary ground for sustaining an opposition in Trademark law.

2. Blurring: The Federal Dilution Trademark Act has made blurring a sufficient ground for sustaining an application. For instance, if a party with a trademark, “WHITE MEAT” files an opposition notice against the application of another party of the mark “RED MEAT”; opposition may be granted based on the likelihood that the registration would blur the distinctiveness of Opposer’s mark.

3. Fraud: The opposition can also be sustained on the basis of fraud if there are findings that the applicant’s assertions regarding the use of the trademark were false and with deceptive intentions.

4. Applicant’s failure to respond: If Applicant fails to respond to the Notice of Default to show cause as to why it failed to file its Answer to the opposition after 40 days, then a Default Judgment sustaining the opposition and refusing the applicant’s trademark registration will be issued after 30 days.