Trademark Clearance Searches in India

Editorial Team
Last Updated
April 11, 2023

When starting a new business or launching a new product, it’s crucial to conduct a thorough trademark clearance search. A trademark clearance search is a process of determining whether a particular trademark is available for use and registration in a particular jurisdiction, such as India, or not. This search helps businesses avoid potential legal issues and conflicts with existing trademark users or owners in the future.

The Clearance Trademark Search is quite comprehensive and is typically conducted by a trademark attorney or a company providing services of Trademark Search using a variety of resources like multiple online databases, industry publications, and even social media platforms to find any trademark similar to the proposed trademark that is already registered or is in use.

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The goal of the clearance search is to identify any potential conflicts that could arise if the new trademark were to be used or registered. If a conflict is identified, the trademark owner may need to make changes to the proposed trademark or seek legal advice to determine the best course of action.

How to conduct Trademark Clearance Searches in India?

In India, trademark clearance searches are conducted through the Indian Trademark Registry, which is a government agency responsible for administering and enforcing Indian trademark laws. The Indian Trademark Registry maintains a database of registered and pending trademarks for businesses to conduct a thorough search to determine if their proposed trademark is already registered or pending for registration with the concerned authority.

There are two levels at which trademark clearance searches can be conducted:

Preliminary or Knockout Search: A preliminary search is a basic search of the proposed trademark on the Indian trademark registry database to determine if a similar trademark already exists. This search is often conducted before applying for trademark registration to avoid potential legal conflicts over the proposed trademark in the near future.
Comprehensive Search: A comprehensive search is a more thorough search of the proposed trademark across multiple national and international trademark registry databases, and common legal sources. This search is usually conducted by a Trademark Attorney or a company providing Trademark Search services and is recommended for businesses that are launching a new product or service or expanding into a new market. A comprehensive trademark search can help businesses identify potential trademark conflicts under multiple jurisdictions and avoid costly legal disputes in the near future.

Let’s understand better with the help of a Trademark Clearance Search Example!

For instance, let’s say that a company in India is planning to launch a new line of energy drinks called “Enerjize.” Before applying for trademark registration, the company conducts a preliminary search and finds that there are no existing trademarks for “Enerjize” in the Indian Trademark Registry database. Well, the process of Trademark Search does not end here!

After the preliminary trademark search, the company decides to conduct a comprehensive trademark search to ensure that there are no potential conflicts with similar trademarks in other jurisdictions or common law sources as well. Now, during the comprehensive search, the company discovers that there is a similar trademark for “Enerjize” registered in the United States for energy drinks.

Based on this information, the company will have to change or modify their trademark, say to “Enerjyze”, to avoid potential conflicts with the existing trademark user of “Energize” in the United States. This decision not only saves the company from potential legal disputes with the US-based trademark owner but also helps avoid costly rebranding efforts which would have arisen in the near future.

FAQs

Q1: What is a Trademark Clearance Search, and why is it important?

A Trademark Clearance Search is a thorough process of determining whether a proposed trademark is available for use and registration in a specific jurisdiction or not. It helps businesses avoid potential legal disputes and conflicts with existing trademark users and owners during the Trademark Registration process.

Q2: What are the resources to conduct a Trademark Clearance Search in India?

Trademark Clearance Searches in India are typically conducted by trademark attorneys or companies providing Trademark Search services. These searches utilize various resources, including multiple online databases, industry publications, and even social media platforms, to find any trademark similar to the proposed one that is to be registered.

Q3: Why is a Trademark Clearance Search recommended for businesses in India?

A Trademark Clearance Search is recommended for businesses in India because it provides a more thorough analysis of potential trademark conflicts across multiple jurisdictions and legal sources. It helps businesses make informed decisions and avoid costly legal disputes of trademark infringement in the future.

Q4: What happens if a potential conflict is found during a Trademark Clearance Search?

If a potential conflict is identified during a Trademark Clearance Search in India, the trademark owner may need to make changes to the proposed trademark or seek legal advice to determine the best course of action. The goal is to avoid any legal disputes and ensure that the proposed trademark is eligible for registration.

Q5: Are Trademark Clearance Search and Trademark Knockout the same?

While the goals of both Knockout and clearance trademark searches is to identify existing trademarks in conflict with a proposed trademark, the resources and scope of these searches are widely different. Knockout Searches only use a centralized database of existing and registered trademarks in a particular jurisdiction to assess the conflict, whereas Trademark Clearance searches use multiple resources across multiple jurisdictions like national and international trademark databases, social media platforms, print and local media to assess the conflict. The results which a knockout search confirms is applicable only to a particular jurisdiction, whereas the results of a clearance search is applicable to multiple jurisdictions as well.