Protection of trademarks, like other intellectual property rights, is very crucial, as proprietors are often faced with the issue of protecting their rights against actual and potential infringement. In Nigeria, there is a structured procedure for addressing these concerns, particularly for trademark applications pending official registration by the Registry.
The procedure for filing a trademark opposition is as follows:
- Where a trademark proprietor notices an infringing mark, such proprietor (“Opponent”) is to file a notice of opposition within two months of publication of the infringing mark in the Trademarks Journal.
- Upon receipt of the notice, the applicant is expected to respond to the notice by filing a counterstatement within one month from the date of service (the application will be deemed abandoned after the one-month period).
- The Opponent, upon receipt of this counterstatement, has one month to file its evidence by way of a statutory declaration.
- The applicant is also given one month to file its statutory declaration.
- Upon filing the above, there is also room to file a written address in support of the claims.
Upon completion of the above steps, the parties will wait for the hearing and delivery of a ruling by the Registry. The decision of the Registry can be overturned by an appeal to the Federal High Court.
Finally, it is important to reiterate that this recourse only applies to pending trademark applications (i.e. unregistered marks). Other options, such as an action for passing off, may be considered for registered marks.