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Usually the first Office Action is issued four months to six months after a trademark application is filed. However, examination of a trademark application can be accelerated if the application is one regarding which either:
1. The applicant or licensee thereof already is using the applied-for trademark for the goods and/or services designated in the application, or preparation to use the trademark is considerably underway, and registration is urgently needed. (The Japan Patent Office decides whether preparation for use is considerably underway and whether registration is urgently needed, based on the documents and evidences submitted by the applicant. [See JPO’s “Guidelines for Accelerated Examination/Accelerated Appeal Examination of Trademark,” II-1, in Japanese only.])
2. A trademark application in which the applicant or licensee thereof designates only goods and/or services that already bear the trademark or that are being prepared to be used with the trademark. (Ibid.)
On average, the first notice of the results of an accelerated examination is issued 1.4 months (in 2009) after the request for accelerated examination is submitted. In order to request accelerated examination of a trademark applicant, an applicant must submit a written explanation of the need for the accelerated examination, together with proof that the trademark application is one of the two types specified above. For a detailed explanation of the above (a) or (b) in a specific situation, please send details to us here.
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