T.M.E.P. § 1503.04
Extension of Time to Oppose
Executive summary:
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1503.04 Extension of Time to Oppose
Requests for extensions of time to oppose are handled by the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board. See TBMP Chapter 200.
A written request for an extension of time must be filed within thirty days after the date of publication in the Official Gazette, or within an extension period granted by the Board. 15 U.S.C. 1063; 37 C.F.R. 2.102(c); TBMP §§202 et seq. The time within which to file a request for extension of time to oppose is set by statute and may not be extended or waived. In re Kabushiki Kaisha Hitachi Seisakusho, 33 USPQ2d 1477 (Comm'r Pats. 1994); In re Cooper, 209 USPQ 670 (Comm'r Pats. 1980).
The request for extension of time to oppose should specify the period of extension desired, and be addressed to the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board. 37 C.F.R. 2.102(c); TBMP §203.01.
No more than three requests to extend the time for filing an opposition may be filed, as follows:
(1) A first request of thirty days will be granted on request, without a showing of cause. Alternatively, a first request of ninety days will be granted upon a showing of good cause. 37 C.F.R. 2.102(c)(1).
(2) If the first request was for thirty days, a second request for sixty days will be granted upon a showing of good cause. 37 C.F.R. 2.102(c)(2).
(3) After receiving extensions totaling ninety days, a final request for sixty days will be granted with the consent of the applicant or upon a showing of extraordinary circumstances. 37 C.F.R. 2.102(c)(3).
The Board will not grant an extension of time to oppose aggregating more than 180 days from the date of publication. 37 C.F.R. 2.102(c).
The request for extension of time to oppose must be signed by either the potential opposer or the potential opposer's attorney. TBMP §203.03.
A request for extension of time to oppose an application based on §1 or §44 of the Trademark Act may be filed either on paper or through ESTTA, at http://estta.uspto.gov/. 37 C.F.R. 2.102(a)(1). A request for extension of time to oppose a §66(a) application must be filed through ESTTA. 37 C.F.R. 2.102(a)(2). See In re Bšrlind Gesellschaft fŸr kosmetische Erzeugnisse mbH, 73 USPQ2d 2019 (TTAB 2005).
An extension of time to oppose is a personal privilege, and the right to oppose will be granted only to the person who requested the extension of time. TBMP §303.05(a). Therefore, great care should be taken to ensure that an extension request clearly and accurately identifies the potential opposer. See 37 C.F.R. 2.102(b) and TBMP §206.03 regarding the misidentification of the name of a party filing an opposition or extension request, and TBMP §§206.02 and 303.05(b) regarding notices of opposition and extension requests filed by persons who are in privity by reason of having the same right or interest, such as related companies under 15 U.S.C. 1055.
See TBMP §216 regarding the handling of a registration that is issued, inadvertently, from an application that was the subject of an unexpired extension of time to oppose on the date of registration.