What Happens If Someone Opposes My Trademark?

Q: What happens if someone opposes my trademark?

Your application moves into a separate contested proceeding. You must file a counter-statement within two months of receiving the opposition notice or the application is treated as abandoned, and the case is then decided on evidence and, usually, a hearing.

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Published 6 August 2026 · Updated 6 August 2026 · 2 min read

An opposition is a formal challenge, filed by a third party, to your trademark application after it's accepted and published — it is not a rejection by the Registry, and most applications are never opposed at all. See our complete guide to opposition proceedings for the full mechanics; this page covers the short version.

Who can oppose, and when

Once your application clears examination, it's published in the Trade Marks Journal. From the date of that publication, anyone — not just a direct competitor — has four months to file a notice of opposition on Form TM-O. This window is fixed by the Trade Marks Rules, 2017 and isn't extendable, so it either happens in that period or it doesn't happen at all for that publication.

The process, step by step

Notice of opposition (TM-O): the opponent sets out the grounds — typically a claim that your mark conflicts with their earlier mark or rights.
Counter-statement: you have two months from receiving the notice to file a counter-statement addressing each ground. Miss this deadline and your application is deemed abandoned — the same hard consequence as missing an examination report deadline.
Evidence: both sides file evidence in support (affidavits, usage records, prior registrations).
Hearing and decision: the Registrar hears both sides and issues a reasoned decision. Either party can appeal an adverse decision to the relevant High Court's intellectual property division.

What this means for cost and timeline

An opposition adds real time — often a year or more — and it's a genuine contested legal proceeding, not paperwork. If your application is opposed, we quote the representation as a separate, fixed engagement before any work begins, exactly as we do for pricing generally — you're never billed after the fact for work you didn't agree to upfront.

Get help with an objection or opposition