Trademark Protection & WHO Patents MCQs With Answer

Introduction

Trademark Protection & WHO Patents MCQs With Answer is designed for M.Pharm students to build a clear, practical understanding of trademark law and international patent-related public health mechanisms relevant to pharmaceuticals. This concise quiz set covers core concepts such as trademark distinctiveness, registration, infringement and remedies, as well as patent fundamentals, patentability criteria, international filing procedures and WHO-led initiatives (like C-TAP) and global policy instruments (Doha Declaration, compulsory licensing). Each question emphasizes real-world applications in the pharmaceutical industry—branding, generic entry, licensing, regulatory linkages and access to medicines—helping students prepare for exams and make informed decisions in research, regulatory affairs and IP management.

Q1. What is the primary legal purpose of a trademark?

• To protect the technical invention behind a product
• To identify and distinguish the commercial source of goods or services
• To secure a temporary monopoly on manufacturing a drug
• To register chemical structures for exclusive use

Correct Answer: To identify and distinguish the commercial source of goods or services

Q2. Which of the following is NOT a recognized function of a trademark?

• Indicating the origin of goods or services
• Guaranteeing consistent quality to consumers
• Protecting technical inventions and processes
• Advertising and reputation building

Correct Answer: Protecting technical inventions and processes

Q3. In trademark distinctiveness, which category is considered the strongest and most easily registrable?

• Descriptive
• Generic
• Fanciful (coined) or arbitrary
• Geographically descriptive

Correct Answer: Fanciful (coined) or arbitrary

Q4. Under most national laws, what is the standard initial registration period for a trademark that can be renewed?

• 5 years
• 10 years
• 20 years
• Life of the owner

Correct Answer: 10 years

Q5. The Nice Classification used for trademark registration consists of how many classes of goods and services?

• 34 classes
• 45 classes
• 50 classes
• 20 classes

Correct Answer: 45 classes

Q6. Which international system allows filing of a single trademark application to seek protection in multiple countries?

• Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT)
• Madrid System administered by WIPO
• Hague System for industrial designs
• TRIPS Agreement

Correct Answer: Madrid System administered by WIPO

Q7. Which of the following is a primary civil remedy available for trademark infringement?

• Compulsory licensing of the trademark
• Injunction to stop infringing use
• Imprisonment of the trademark owner
• Automatic assignment of the trademark to the infringer

Correct Answer: Injunction to stop infringing use

Q8. Trademark dilution refers to which phenomenon?

• Loss of patent protection due to prior art
• Weakening of a famous mark’s distinctiveness or reputation by another mark
• Reduction in trademark term from non-use
• Conversion of trademark into a patent

Correct Answer: Weakening of a famous mark’s distinctiveness or reputation by another mark

Q9. Which three elements are essential to prove a passing off action?

• Registration, use, and renewal
• Goodwill, misrepresentation, and damage
• Novelty, inventive step, and industrial applicability
• Priority date, filing date, and publication

Correct Answer: Goodwill, misrepresentation, and damage

Q10. Which statement best distinguishes a trademark from a patent?

• A trademark protects inventions for 20 years; a patent protects brands indefinitely
• A trademark protects signs identifying source or brand; a patent protects technical inventions and innovations
• Trademarks and patents are identical in scope and duration
• A patent protects company names only; a trademark protects processes

Correct Answer: A trademark protects signs identifying source or brand; a patent protects technical inventions and innovations

Q11. What is the typical maximum term of patent protection from the filing date in most countries?

• 10 years
• 15 years
• 20 years
• 25 years

Correct Answer: 20 years

Q12. Which set correctly lists the core patentability criteria?

• Novelty, inventive step (non‑obviousness), industrial applicability (utility)
• Distinctiveness, use in commerce, non-deceptive
• Registration, publication, opposition
• Novelty, trademark clearance, marketability

Correct Answer: Novelty, inventive step (non‑obviousness), industrial applicability (utility)

Q13. The WHO COVID-19 Technology Access Pool (C-TAP) aims to achieve which of the following?

• Mandatory global patent revocation for COVID-19 technologies
• Voluntary sharing of IP, data, and know-how to facilitate equitable access
• Granting patents on behalf of national offices
• Providing exclusive manufacturing rights to a single company

Correct Answer: Voluntary sharing of IP, data, and know-how to facilitate equitable access

Q14. The Doha Declaration on TRIPS and Public Health (2001) primarily affirmed what right for WTO members?

• The right to deny compulsory licenses under any circumstances
• The right to use TRIPS flexibilities, including compulsory licensing, to protect public health
• The obligation to extend all patents by five years for medicines
• Exclusive patent enforcement by the World Health Organization

Correct Answer: The right to use TRIPS flexibilities, including compulsory licensing, to protect public health

Q15. Who typically has the authority to grant a compulsory license for a patented medicine?

• World Health Organization (WHO)
• National government or designated national authority
• WIPO Director General
• Patent owner by unilateral decision

Correct Answer: National government or designated national authority

Q16. Which statement best describes the Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT)?

• The PCT grants a single international patent valid in all member states
• The PCT provides a unified procedure for filing international patent applications but does not grant patents
• The PCT is a WHO program for drug approvals
• The PCT is a compulsory licensing forum

Correct Answer: The PCT provides a unified procedure for filing international patent applications but does not grant patents

Q17. The Medicines Patent Pool (MPP) was established primarily to do what?

• Issue patents to pharmaceutical companies
• Negotiate voluntary licenses to increase access to essential medicines
• Replace national patent offices in developing countries
• Enforce patent monopolies through litigation

Correct Answer: Negotiate voluntary licenses to increase access to essential medicines

Q18. What is the purpose of a Supplementary Protection Certificate (SPC) in the pharmaceutical sector?

• To shorten the effective patent life for medicines due to rapid market entry
• To extend the effective patent protection for a medicine to compensate for regulatory approval delays
• To convert a trademark into a patent
• To require compulsory licensing for essential drugs

Correct Answer: To extend the effective patent protection for a medicine to compensate for regulatory approval delays

Q19. Patent linkage refers to which regulatory practice?

• Linking trademark registration to patent ownership
• Linking marketing authorization of generic medicines to the patent status of the originator product
• Linking patent term to the number of classes in the Nice Classification
• Cross-listing patents across national patent offices automatically

Correct Answer: Linking marketing authorization of generic medicines to the patent status of the originator product

Q20. The exhaustion (first sale) doctrine in IP law means which of the following?

• IP rights continue indefinitely after the first sale
• Exhaustion applies only to patents, not trademarks
• Authorized sale of a protected product exhausts the IP owner’s right to control resale of that specific item
• First sale creates a new patent term starting from the resale date

Correct Answer: Authorized sale of a protected product exhausts the IP owner’s right to control resale of that specific item

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