This legal economics project aims to shed light on how uncertain intellectual property rights can affect the competitive situation of different actors through the possibility of opposition to granted patents and trademarks. Secure and well-defined intellectual property rights are crucial for effective competition between market players, as in the simplest theoretical model an opposition procedure has the potential to transform a market from a monopoly to a duopoly.

The project focuses on a hitherto neglected aspect in the literature, opposition proceedings against patents and trademarks during the period, 1977-2016. An empirical analysis of how these oppositions are related to the type of intellectual property rights and their owners can provide insight into how firms act strategically to create uncertainty about competitors' intellectual property rights while protecting their own.