Reply to Trademark Objection — Free Examination Report Reply Generator (Sec 9 and 11)
Draft a professional, citation-backed reply to a trademark examination report – the section 9 and section 11 objections – free. The generator builds a complete reply in the format practitioners actually file through MIS-R (no government fee), with per-cited-mark comparison tables, verified Supreme Court and High Court citations, an evidence-affidavit checklist and the filing steps. Reply deadline: ONE MONTH from receipt – the date calculator below keeps you honest.
Step 1
Application and examination report details
Step 2
Objections raised in the report
Section 9(1)(a) – mark said to be devoid of distinctive character
Section 9(1)(b) – mark said to be descriptive of the goods/services (kind, quality, purpose, origin etc.)
Section 9(1)(c) – mark said to be customary in the trade
Section 11(1) – earlier similar marks cited against the application
Step 3
Your case
Year-wise sales turnover
Advertising / promotion spend
Invoices (oldest + recent)
Dealer / distributor list
Website / domain / social media
Press coverage / awards
Claim honest concurrent use (section 12)Only if you have been using the mark honestly in parallel with a cited mark for years – needs strong evidence.
Consent / no-objection obtained from a cited proprietorAttach the consent letter as an exhibit if ticked.
Offer to narrow the specification of goods/servicesVishnudas Trading (SC): registration can be confined to goods actually dealt in – a powerful olive branch.
Draft reply
Evidence affidavit checklist (attach with the reply if use is claimed)
How to file this reply (2026)
1. Convert the signed reply (and notarised affidavit + exhibits, if any) to PDF. 2. Log in at the IP India e-filing portal – as your agent, or under your own Proprietor login if self-filing. 3. Choose MIS-R – Reply to Examination Report, select the application number, attach the PDFs and submit. Government fee: NIL. 4. Keep the acknowledgement. The status will later change to Accepted and Advertised, or Ready for Show Cause Hearing (typically listed in 3-6 months) – fresh evidence can still be handed up at the hearing. 5. If more time is genuinely needed, an extension request goes on Form TM-M (Rs 900) – but it is discretionary; treat the one-month deadline as hard.
What a strong examination-report reply does
Six in ten Indian applications receive an examination report, and most objections are answerable – but the reply has to argue law, not sentiment. A professional reply does four things: it addresses EACH objection separately; it argues the mark AS A WHOLE (courts refuse to dissect marks into fragments); it distinguishes every cited mark on sound, look, idea, goods and trade channels with the status of each citation checked on the register; and it closes with the correct prayer – acceptance and advertisement, with a hearing requested in the alternative so that no adverse order is passed unheard. This generator builds exactly that structure, on verified authority: the Cadila multi-factor similarity test, Nandhini Deluxe on same-class-different-goods, F. Hoffmann-La Roche and J.R. Kapoor on common trade elements, Corn Products on imperfect recollection, Godfrey Phillips and T.V. Venugopal on acquired secondary meaning, and Vishnudas Trading on narrowing the specification.
Frequently asked questions
Is there a government fee for replying to a trademark objection?
No. The reply to an examination report is filed online through MIS-R with no government fee. Costs arise only if you engage a professional to draft it – typically Rs 2,500 to 8,000 in the market – or later need an adjournment (TM-M, Rs 900).
What happens if I miss the one-month deadline?
The application is liable to be treated as abandoned under Rule 33(4) read with section 132. Extensions on TM-M are discretionary and often refused, so treat one month from receipt as a hard deadline. A genuinely abandoned application can sometimes be revived by a review petition within one month of the abandonment order, but refiling is often the practical route.
A cited mark in my report is Abandoned or Removed – does the objection still stand?
A dead citation is one of the strongest answers available: check each cited mark’s current status on the register, attach the status printout, and point out that an abandoned, withdrawn, removed or refused mark is no bar under section 11. This generator adds that paragraph automatically when you set a cited mark’s status.
My mark is a bit descriptive – is the case hopeless?
Not hopeless, but be realistic. The section 9(1) proviso saves marks that acquired distinctiveness through use BEFORE the application date – proved with a notarised affidavit of year-wise sales, advertising spend and invoices. The Supreme Court in Godfrey Phillips protected SUPER CUP on secondary meaning. But the Delhi High Court’s Sugar Free ruling cuts the other way: whoever adopts a descriptive term must tolerate others’ honest descriptive use. If you have little or no use evidence, a more distinctive mark is usually the better investment.
Should I request a hearing in the reply?
Yes – always in the alternative. The standard prayer asks the Registrar to waive the objections and advertise the mark, and in any case not to pass an adverse order without an opportunity of hearing (section 18(4) read with Rule 33(3)). Section 18(5) separately entitles you to written grounds if the application is refused.
This generator produces a first draft based on the Trade Marks Act 1999, the Trade Marks Rules 2017 and verified case law as at July 2026. Every matter turns on its own facts – have the draft reviewed by a trademark attorney or agent before filing, verify each cited mark’s status on the register on the day of filing, and never cite a case without checking it applies to your facts. CalcGuru is not affiliated with the Office of the CGPDTM.
A trademark objection has a 30-day clock.
Miss the reply and the application is treated as abandoned - the fee and the filing date both go with it. My Cloud Accountant drafts and files the reply, and handles the hearing if the Registry lists one. Fully online through IP India, wherever you are.
