What is a priority right?

Photo of Tomas Orsula

Written by Tomas Orsula

Senior Trademark Attorney

In trademark law, a priority right is the right of an applicant to claim the filing date of an earlier trademark application as the effective date for a subsequent application in another country. It is established under the Paris Convention and gives the applicant a six-month window to file in additional jurisdictions while using the original filing date as the priority date in each.

Priority rights are relevant when registering internationally. If you file in country A and then file in country B within six months, your country B application is treated as if it had been filed on the same date as your country A application. This protects you against any similar marks filed in country B between the two dates.

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