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Guided answer
My brand conflicts with an earlier mark. What are my options?
Relative grounds for refusal turn on how similar the marks and goods are, how well known the earlier mark is and whether the earlier owner agrees.
Written consent can open the way.
Moderate complexity - several routes or missing facts
- The Act does not prevent registration where the proprietor of the earlier mark consents; the Registrar may then register the mark under the special circumstances in section 12 (section 11(4)).
- Get a signed consent that says what each party will and will not do, in what goods and territories, and put safeguards against confusion.
- The Registrar still decides; consent does not guarantee registration.
Not sure whether this applies to your invention?
The honest answer usually needs someone to look at your actual disclosure, your timeline and the prior art. That is a conversation, not an article.