The Canadian Intellectual Property Office (CIPO) has been coping with a growing backlog of trademark applications and scarce resources since the covid-19 pandemic, with applicants experiencing a wait time of three-and-a-half years for applications to reach first examination. A number of measures have been put in place by CIPO to...

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The Canadian Intellectual Property Office (CIPO) has been coping with a growing backlog of trademark applications and scarce resources since the covid-19 pandemic, with applicants experiencing a wait time of three-and-a-half years for applications to reach first examination. A number of measures have been put in place by CIPO to help with the backlog, one of which includes the automated pre-assessment of goods and services that came into effect in April 2022. This means that applications will be evaluated against a list of goods and services that has already been approved, and applicants will receive pre-assessment letters informing them of the results of the automated analysis. Despite the delays, filing data from the previous year shows filings increased by 2.3% in 2021, and the trend is expected to continue, especially in light of Canada’s admission to the Madrid System in 2019. The increase in work is reflected in the WTR 1000 this year, with the addition of two new firms and several new practitioners.

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