• Search Types
  • Availability Search
  • Registrability Search
  • Infringement Search
  • Exact Search
  • Proprietor Search
  • Foreign Trade Mark Records
• Watching Services
• Guide to Understanding Trade Mark Search Reports
  • Mark to be Searched
  • Goods/Services
  • Classes
  • Number of Last Application Searched
  • Date of Last Application Searched
  • Phonetic Variations and Synonyms Searched
  • Online Searching
  • Microfiche Searching
  • Sample Trade Mark Search Report
• Fees
  • Fixed Rate
  • Time Based Rate
  • Document Delivery
  • Watching Services

This search is the most thorough of all trade mark searches and provides for marks that are to be registered and used on a specific range of goods or services.

The Availability Search includes registered, pending, removed and lapsed marks that;-

1. may be cited by the Trade Marks Office during examination if an application is made for the mark being searched;

2. may result in infringement action if the proposed mark is used;

3. may result in passing off action or breech of the Trade Practices Act if the proposed mark is used.

Together with the official Trade Mark records (in the case of word marks) we search:

• 18 foreign language dictionaries;
• Scientific & Technical Dictionaries and Encyclopaedias;
• The Columbia-Lippincott Gazetteer of the World;
• Australian Electoral Roll;
• All Yellow Pages Telephone Directories available in Australia;
• World Health Organisation List of Non-Proprietary Trade Marks;
• List of Prohibited Trade Marks;
• Who's Who in Australia - Trade Mark Section;
• Australian Security Commission Company and Business Name Database.
• Proprietry Trade Indexes.

INFRINGEMENT SEARCH

The Infringement Search is used to determine whether the use of a proposed mark may result in an infringement action being brought by an aggrieved registered trade mark proprietor.

This search involves the inspection of current marks that are identical to the proposed mark or are of similar phonetic or visual appearance or have similar meaning.

Our search includes the standard Trade Marks Office range of classes applicable to particular goods and services classes.

EXACT SEARCH

This search is used to determine whether a particular mark is registered or pending at the time of the search. No variations are included unless specifically requested at the time of instruction.

PROPRIETOR SEARCH

The Proprietor Search is to reveal all applications or registrations that are currently in the name of an individual or organisation, irrespective of whether the application was filed in the name or assigned to the name.

As a registered trade mark can be renewed on an ongoing basis, it is possible that a registration whose application was filed in 1906 (the year the Commonwealth Trade Marks Act was enacted) may still be in force.

A Proprietor Search may need to be limited in time span, according to the age or date of incorporation of the applicants or registered owners.

FOREIGN TRADE MARK RECORDS

Exact trade mark searches are available for the listed countries.

Austria	Italy
Benelux	Liechtenstein
Canada	Monaco
Denmark	Norway
Finland	Sweden
Germany	United Kingdom
Italy	United States of America (State & Federal)
Ireland

Exact trade mark searches for Madrid Agreement Registrations are also available. This file does not include marks consisting only of devices, logos, etc.

Madrid Agreement Signatories:

Algeria	Germany	Mongolia	Spain
Austria	Hungary	Morocco	Sudan
Belgium	Italy	Netherlands	Switzerland
Bulgaria	North Korea	Portugal	Tunisia
Czechoslovakia	Liechtenstein	Romania	Vietnam
Egypt	Luxembourg	San Marino	Yugoslavia
France	Monaco	Soviet Union

This service provides information about every trade mark application that is filed in a given name and is reported monthly or as requested. It is an ideal way of closely monitoring what your competitors are doing.

Application/Registration Number

This service closely follows the path of the given application or registration so that any change of status can be detected as it is advertised. A watch on an application number will give notice of acceptance, thereby allowing adequate time for opposition.

Subject Matter (Filings)

This service provides details about every application filed in a particular class or classes and is reported monthly or as requested.

Subject Matter (Acceptances)

This service provides details about every application that is accepted in a particular class or classes and is reported monthly or as required.

This guide has been produced for use with the standard Trade Mark Search Report (a sample report is provided), so as to make interpretation more reliable and accurate.

MARK TO BE SEARCHED: This section of the report indicates to you the mark that was searched. If it is not the correct mark then we should be notified immediately.

GOODS/SERVICES: This section is where we indicate to you our understanding of the goods or services that you have instructed us to direct our search towards.

CLASSES: Generally we choose the classes to search based on the goods/services provided by you. You may, however, direct us to search a range of classes based on your own judgement. If you instruct us to search a particular class range we need to know the goods/services that are of interest.

NUMBER OF LAST APPLICATION SEARCHED: This indicates the application number of the most recently indexed application that is available for searching.

DATE OF LAST APPLICATION SEARCHED: This indicates the date of filing of the most recently indexed application that is available for searching.

Note: The Trade Marks Office receives applications for trade mark registration in its state Sub-Offices and forwards them to the central office in Canberra. The applications are then entered into the database in batches. This allows applications to be numbered out of receipt order.

In order to alleviate this problem, the Trade Marks Office advises us to assume that there may be some trade mark applications that were lodged up to ten working days earlier than indicated by the Date of Last Application and which have not yet been indexed.

PHONETIC VARIATIONS AND SYNONYMS SEARCHED This section details the range of our search in terms of phonetic variations, (e.g. misspellings) and other marks that may cause confusion or deception in the market place.

ONLINE SEARCHING When our search involves the online Trade Marks Database the following options may be chosen:

OPTION 1	This option will search only on the "letter string" keyed and only where it appears as a whole word. e.g. OPTION 1, "LION", will extract "LION", but will not extract "LIONS", "LIONESS" or "STALLION".
OPTION 2	This option will find a letter string that appears at the beginning of a word (prefix). e.g. OPTION 2, "LION", will find "LION" together with "LIONS", "LIONESS" but not "STALLION".
OPTION 3	This option will find a letter string anywhere in a mark. e.g. OPTION 3, "LION", will find "LIONS", "LIONESS" and "STALLION".
OPTION 4	This option will only find the letter string where it appears at the end of a word. e.g. OPTION 4, "LION", will not find "LIONS" or "LIONESS", will find "STALLION" but not find "STALLIONS".
OPTION 5	This option uses a variation of the New York Police Department phonetic converter which does predetermined letter substitutions. It is a highly speculative option and a search on OPTION 5, "LION", will find amongst other marks, "LION", "LEMOS", "LAWN", "LOWMOOR", "LLAMA", "LEMORA" and "LIME".
OPTION 6	This option searches for those trade marks that include devices, logos, pictures, drawings, etc. Option 6 will extract matches for the device entered. e.g. OPTION 6, "LION", will only find those marks that include one "LION" device.
OPTION 7	This option will find any mark with a device beginning with the prefix entered. e.g. OPTION 7, "LION", will find "LION", "LIONS" and "LIONESS'S" devices.
OPTION 8	This option allows search sets to be combined using the Boolean Operators "AND", "OR" and "AND NOT". e.g. Set 1 "OR" Set 2 gives all items included in either Set 1 or Set 2. Set 1 "AND" Set 2 gives only those items that exist in both sets. Set 1 "AND NOT" Set 2 will give all those items that appear in Set 1 but excluding those that appear in Set 2.

MICROFICHE SEARCHING The following conventions are used when detailing the variations applied to microfiche searching.

1. Three periods before a letter string indicate that the letter string was searched as a suffix.
   e.g. "...LION" will find "LION", "STALLION", but not "LIONS" or "LIONESS".
   
2. Three periods after a letter string indicate that the letter string was searched as a prefix.
   e.g. "LION..." would find "LION", "LIONS" and "LIONESS", but not "STALLION".
   
3. Three periods before and after the letter string indicate that the letter string was searched as a prefix and a suffix. N.B. It does not indicate that the letter string is embedded between letters before and after the letter string.
   e.g. "...LION..." indicates a combination of 1 and 2 above, but not where "LION" appears with letters before and after it.
   
4. A series of letters appearing one below the other indicate that each letter was substituted into the word and then searched. Sometimes there may be multiple substitutions throughout the word. e.g. "LION"
                       Y
   indicates that the letter strings "LION" and "LYON" were searched.
5. Parenthesis are used in a letter string to indicate that the letter string was searched with and without the enclosed letter or letters.
   e.g. "LION(N)(S)" indicates the letter strings "LION", "LIONN", "LIONS" and "LIONNS" were searched.

Typically each search of the microfiche records will result in a number of these conventions being used on the one letter string.

e.g. "LION(S)..."
          Y

MARK SEARCHED: "LION"

The search strategy for a trade mark search is created having regard to the mark to be searched, the goods and/or services for which the mark is proposed to be used and the type of search instructed (i.e. exact, infringement, registrability or availability). As a consequence the results of this search should ONLY be used for considering the mark searched and for the type of search requested.

PHONETIC VARIATIONS AND SYNONYMS SEARCHED:

ONLINE

1)	Opt.5.	LION	1(A)
2)	Opt.3.	LION	1(A)
3)	Opt.3.	LYON	1(A)
4)	Opt.7.	LION	1(A)

NUMBER OF LAST APPLICATION SEARCHED: 737890

DATE OF LAST APPLICATION SEARCHED: 19 June, 1997

MARK SEARCHED: "LION"

INDEXES SEARCHED:	DONE	FOUND (p/c obtained)
1)	Dictionary	[ x ]	[ ]
2)	Electoral Roll (Surnames)	[ x ]	[ ]
3)	Pharmaceutical Names Index	[ ]	[ ]
4)	Gazetteer	[ x ]	[ ]
5)	Chemical Dictionary	[ x ]	[ ]
6)	Merck	[ x ]	[ ]
7)	MIMS	[ ]	[ ]
8)	Dictionary of Scientific and Technical Terms	[ x ]	[ ]
9)	Who's Who in Australia (Trade Mark Section)**	[ x ]	[ ]
10)	Oz On Disc (Business Names)	[ x ]	[ ]
11)	Multilingual Dictionary	[ x ]	[ ]
12)	Australian Securities Commission	[ x ]	[ ]

** Who’s Who In Australia is published by Riddell Information Services Pty Ltd