On August 6, 2021, the China National Intellectual Property Administration (CNIPA) announced that effective September 1, 2021, an applicant and its trademark agency will be required to submit a letter of good faith in support of any opposition, opposition appeal, and invalidation submission that includes a claim for well-known protection under Article 13 of the PRC Trademark Law, which provides generally broad (and cross-class) protection for marks that are “well-known.”

The CNIPA notice can be accessed here: http://sbj.cnipa.gov.cn/tzgg/202108/t20210806_333421.html.

According to the new formalities requirements, a trademark applicant and its trademark agency are now required to submit a document entitled “Letter of Good Faith of the Party Petitioning for Protection of Well-Known Marks” (Letter of Good Faith). The Letter of Good Faith provides that

1. The applicant and the trademark agent are fully aware of the relevant provisions for the determination and protection of well-known marks under the Trademark Law, Regulations on the Implementation of the Trademark Law, Regulations on the Identification and Protection of Well-known Trademarks, and similar such laws and regulations, and the applicant and the trademark agent will fill out and submit all relevant materials in accordance with the requirements as well as follow the principles of honesty and good faith.
2. The relevant information and evidential materials submitted to support opposition, opposition appeal, and invalidation submissions are authentic, accurate, and complete, and there are no false circumstances, such as forgery, alteration, concealment of evidence, or incitement, bribery, or coercion of false testimony of others.
3. There are no dishonest acts, such as malicious collusion with the adverse party, and no acts of fraudulently petitioning for protection of well-known marks by other improper means.

The CNIPA has yet to confirm whether an original Letter of Good Faith should be submitted at the time of an initial filing when it involves a foreign entity or whether the original letter can be supplemented in three months from an initial submission. At the time of writing, it is advisable for a foreign applicant to submit an original Letter of Good Faith with the initial submission for each matter that involves an Article 13 claim to avoid outright rejection of the well-known claim in the relevant submission.

Perkins Coie will be watching developments in new requirements in the coming months, so stay tuned. A bilingual version of the Letter of Good Faith is set out below.

当事人请求驰名商标保护诚信承诺书

Letter of Good Faith of the Party Petitioning for Protection of Well-Known Marks

本人/本单位 _____________ 作为第 ___ 号 ________商标（异议/不予注册复审/无效宣告）案件的（异议人/原异议人/申请人），请求驰名商标保护，代理机构为_____________ ，代理人为_____________ ，在此郑重承诺：

I/this Company, _____________, as (the opponent/previous opponent/applicant) of the trademark case (opposition/opposition review/invalidation) involving the ________mark under No. ________, hereby requests the protection of well-known marks. The agency is______________. The agent is___________. We hereby solemnly make the following commitments:

一、    已知悉《商标法》《商标法实施条例》《驰名商标认定和保护规定》等法律法规规章关于驰名商标认定和保护的相关规定，并按照要求填写和提交材料，遵循诚实信用原则。

We are fully aware of the relevant provisions for the determination and protection of well-known marks under the Trademark Law, Regulations on the Implementation of the Trademark Law, Regulations on the Identification and Protection of Well-known Trademarks, and similar such laws and regulations, and we will fill out and submit the materials in accordance with relevant requirements, and will follow the principles of honesty and good faith.

二、    保证异议/评审文书中相关信息、证据材料内容真实、准确、完整，不存在伪造、变造、隐匿证据及指使、贿买、胁迫他人作伪证等虚假情形。

We ensure that the relevant information and evidential materials submitted to support opposition, opposition appeal and invalidation submissions are authentic, accurate and complete, and there are no false circumstances, such as forgery, alteration, concealment of evidence, or incitement, bribery, coercion of false testimony of others, etc.

三、    保证不存在与对方当事人恶意串通等不诚信行为，不存在其他以不正当手段骗取驰名商标保护的行为。

We ensure that that there are no dishonest acts such as malicious collusion with the opposing party, and no acts of fraudulently petitioning for protection of well-known marks by other improper means.

上述情形如有违反，本人/本单位、本代理机构及代理人愿承担不利后果和相应的法律责任。

In the event of a violation of the above circumstances, I/the Company, the agency and the agent are willing to bear adverse consequences and corresponding legal liabilities.