2021 Filings by Type / Class / Category / Status

This post provides a mark type / class / category / status breakdown of the 78,405 trademark applications¹ CIPO received in 2021.

2021 Agent Appointment Statistics

CIPO received 78,405 trademark applications¹ in 2021.  This post provides an agent-focused statistical summary² of those filings.

2021 Agent vs. no Agent Filings

CIPO received 78,405 trademark applications¹ in 2021.  This post breaks them down² in terms of filings which either do or do not appoint an agent—for all filings, Madrid filings and non-Madrid filings respectively.

2021 Agent Rankings

CIPO received 78,405 trademark applications¹ in 2021.  This post ranks them as of 31-Dec-2021 in terms of the number of appointments per agent on behalf of: (1) all applicants, (2) Canadian resident applicants and (3) non-Canadian resident applicants.

The College’s Agent Roster as of 31-Dec-2021

This post summarizes the provincial distribution of Canadian patent and trademark agents as of 31-Dec-2021.

Has the Backlog Stabilized?

CIPO’s backlog of unexamined trademark applications appears to have stabilized somewhat.  For the past 7 weeks (i.e. since mid-October 2021) the backlog has hovered at around 180,000 applications although it is still creeping upward.

Registrar-Initiated Section 45 Requests

The previous post discussed non-use expungement proceedings initiated by a third party pursuant to Section 45 of the Trademarks Act R.S.C., 1985, c. T-13 (the TMA).  This post pertains to the initiation of such proceedings by the Registrar on his or her own initiative¹.

Section 45 Expungement Proceedings

Since 1975, the Registrar has issued 12,675 expungement decisions in proceedings seeking summary cancellation (expungement) of registered Canadian trademarks on non-use grounds.  725 such proceedings are actively ongoing as of 22-Nov-2021, according to CIPO’s trademark .xml data.

Section 44 Proceedings

Section 44 of the Trademarks Act R.S.C., 1985, c. T-13 (the TMA) pertains to “...any trademark that was on the register on July 1, 1954...”.

Active Opposition Proceedings

1,461 Canadian trademark opposition proceedings are ongoing as of 08-Nov-2021, according to CIPO’s trademark .xml data.

Extension Applications

This post looks at extension applications, which seek to extend the goods / services coverage of an existing trademark registration pursuant to Section 41(2) of the Trademarks Act (R.S.C., 1985, c. T-13).

The College’s Agent Roster as of 12-Oct-2021

On Monday, 28-June-2021 The College of Patent Agents & Trademark Agents (CPATA or “the College”) took over from CIPO as the regulator of registered (now, “licensed”) Canadian patent and trademark agents.  This post examines the current status of the College’s agent roster—which remains a work in progress.

Application Pendency—How Long?

A reader emailed me to ask “What’s the longest a trademark application can stay pending without being approved or refused by the CIPO?”  The simplistic answer is “theoretically, forever”; but I'll provide some pendency numbers—and some historical observations—in this post.

Appeals of ex parte examination Refusals

A reader emailed me to ask if CIPO’s trademark .xml data can be mined to determine how often applicants appeal or seek judicial review of prosecution refusals.  The answer is a qualified yes.

Top Section 9 Filers

So far in 2021 the European Data Protection Board is the top filer of Canadian Section 9 Prohibited/Official Mark applications, with 37 such filings.