Glossary
French: opposition EUIPO
An EUIPO opposition is filed at the EUIPO against an application for a European Union trademark. It must be filed within three months of publication of the EU application (or of the international registration designating the EU). The deadline is not extendable — a key difference from TTAB practice with its extensions of time to oppose.
The official opposition fee is €320. The opposition can be based on an earlier mark — a national mark covering any EU country or an EU mark (formerly “Community trade mark”) — and several earlier rights can be invoked without increasing the fee, unlike the per-ground fee structure at the French INPI. Rights other than trademarks, such as a company name, can also be invoked, provided their scope is not merely local.
The procedure begins with a two-month “cooling-off” period in which nothing happens, designed to allow amicable settlement (often via a coexistence agreement); it can be extended. The opponent then has two months to complete its opposition, and the applicant two months to respond. Once the adversarial phase closes, the EUIPO takes roughly three to four months to issue a decision. Total duration: about twelve months on average, absent cooling-off extension or suspension.
Remember the leverage: because the EUTM is unitary, one earlier national right can defeat the entire EU application (subject to conversion).
Full procedure and strategy: trademark opposition before the EUIPO. See also: INPI opposition, trademark watch.