BANGLADESH Law and Practice Contributed by: A B M Shamsud Doulah, Rajin Ahmed and A B M Sohailud Doulah, Doulah & Doulah
• the owner of an earlier registered trade mark or copyright; • any third party with a legitimate legal or commer - cial interest; • the Registrar of Trade Marks (in cases of non-use or procedural irregularities); and • admissibility/standing requirements. A cancellation applicant must demonstrate a legal or commercial interest in the matter. This can be satis - fied by: • proof of prior use of a similar or identical mark; • ownership of an earlier registered trade mark; and • evidence of harm due to the existence of the regis - tered mark (eg, market confusion, unfair competi - tion). Grounds for Revocation/Cancellation These grounds are as follows: • non-use – if the registered trade mark has not been used for five consecutive years from the date of registration, a third party may file for cancellation; • lack of distinctiveness – if the mark is generic or descriptive and does not serve as a trade mark; • bad faith registration – if the mark was registered fraudulently or with deceptive intent; and • conflict with prior rights – if the mark infringes upon earlier trade mark rights, copyright or well-known marks. 5.4 Opposition or Revocation/Cancellation Procedure Opposition Procedure in Bangladesh The opposition process in Bangladesh follows a struc - tured procedure under the Trademarks Act, 2009 and the Trade Marks Rules, 2015. The key steps include the following. • Filing of notice of opposition (TM-5): any person may oppose a trade mark application within 120 days from the date of publication in the Trade Marks Journal by filing a Notice of Opposition (TM- 5) with the Trade Marks Registry. The opposition must specify the grounds, such as similarity to an existing mark, lack of distinctiveness, or bad faith registration.
• Response by the applicant (TM-6): the applicant has two months from the date of receipt of the opposition notice to file a counterstatement (TM-6), addressing the claims made by the opposing party. Failure to file a response results in automatic aban - donment of the application. • Evidence submission: both parties have an oppor - tunity to present evidence in support of their claims. The opponent submits evidence first, fol - lowed by the applicant, and the opponent then has the option to file further rebuttal evidence. • Hearing: if the opposition is not resolved through documentary evidence alone, the matter proceeds to a hearing before the Registrar of Trade Marks. At this stage, both parties present oral arguments and may be questioned by the Registrar. • Decision and appeals: the Registrar will issue a written decision, either upholding the opposition (refusing the trade mark registration) or dismiss - ing the opposition (allowing the registration to proceed). If either party is dissatisfied, they may file an appeal before the High Court Division of the Supreme Court of Bangladesh. • Regarding discovery, Bangladesh does not have a formal discovery process similar to common law jurisdictions. However, parties may submit docu - mentary evidence of use, reputation, distinctive - ness and prior rights to strengthen their case. Revocation/Cancellation Actions in Bangladesh In Bangladesh, revocation or cancellation of a regis - tered trade mark can be initiated before both: • the Trade Marks Registry (Registrar of Trade Marks); and • the civil courts (district court or High Court Divi - sion). The Registrar of Trade Marks has jurisdiction to remove a registered trade mark on certain grounds, such as non-use for five consecutive years or reg - istration obtained by fraud. However, more complex disputes – especially those involving ownership dis - putes, passing off, or infringement claims – are gener - ally handled by the civil courts. Similarly, copyright-related cancellation actions are typically handled by the BCO or through civil litiga -
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