Intellectual property

Trade Marks & Geographical Indications

In India, rights in a brand are decided by use, by registration and by evidence. We help clients get all three right.

Clearance, filing and prosecution in India and through Madrid, oppositions and rectifications, well-known mark recognition, and geographical indications.

Registration gives the owner the exclusive right to use a mark for the goods and services it covers, and a statutory action for infringement. Unregistered marks are protected too, through passing off, and a prior user’s rights survive even against a later registration (section 34). That is why we start every brand with a search and a look at who has been using what, and since when.

From application to registration

Search and clearance. Registry records, company and domain names, marketplaces and the market itself.
Filing. A single-class or multi-class application, on a “proposed to be used” basis or claiming use, supported by evidence where use is claimed.
Examination. The Registry issues an examination report. We reply in writing and attend the show-cause hearing if one is fixed.
Advertisement. An accepted mark is published in the Trade Marks Journal. Anyone can oppose it within four months, and that period cannot be extended.
Registration. If there is no opposition, or it fails, the mark is registered for ten years from the application date, renewable indefinitely.

India joined the Madrid Protocol in 2013. Overseas owners can designate India in an international application, and Indian businesses can extend protection to other member countries through the Registry.

Beyond the word mark

Shapes, colours and sounds have been registered as trade marks in India, and in November 2025 the Registry accepted the first smell mark, a rose fragrance for tyres, and advertised it for opposition (see India’s first smell mark). Marks can also be recognised as well known, by the Registrar or by a court, which extends protection to unrelated goods and services.

Geographical indications

From Darjeeling tea to Kolhapuri chappals, a geographical indication protects a product whose quality or reputation comes from where it is made. We act for producer associations and authorised users before the GI Registry in Chennai, and on enforcement at home and abroad (see Prada and the Kolhapuri chappal).

How we help

Clearance searches and use investigations
Filing and prosecution in India and through Madrid
Oppositions, rectifications and cancellations
Well-known mark recognition
Renewals, recordals of assignments and licences, portfolio audits
.IN (INDRP) and UDRP domain disputes
GI registration and authorised users

Key laws

Trade Marks Act, 1999
Trade Marks Rules, 2017
Madrid Protocol
Geographical Indications of Goods Act, 1999

Frequently asked questions

How long does it take to register a trade mark in India?

An application that draws no objection and no opposition can be registered in well under a year. An objection, a hearing or an opposition can add many months. While the application is pending you can use the ™ symbol. The ® symbol may be used only once the mark is registered, and falsely representing a mark as registered is an offence.

Can I oppose someone else’s trade mark application?

Yes. Any person can file a notice of opposition within four months of the date the application is advertised in the Trade Marks Journal. The period is fixed and cannot be extended, so marks that matter should be watched from the moment they are filed.

Does the first person to file own the mark?

Not necessarily. India protects the rights of a prior user, even against a later registered proprietor (section 34), and passing off protects unregistered marks with goodwill. Registration is still the strongest and cheapest way to prove and enforce your rights.