Our company is incorporated in Japan and applying for a trademark for the US market. Do we need to coordinate our trademark registration in Japan or can we do it independently?

The trademark application you file in Japan does not necessarily have to be submitted simultaneously with the US one. If you wish to obtain protection in the US market, you can file an individual application with the USPTO. This can be done at any time.

However, since you are based in Japan, you will need a US attorney to represent you in the registration proceedings. If you sell the same products in Japan and the US, your attorney can simply mirror your Japanese application.

Bear in mind that the Japanese and US applications will be processed independently by two different IP offices. If one fails, it doesn’t mean the other will fail too. The same goes for the opposition from third parties. If you receive an opposition in Japan, you might not get opposed in the US and the other way around.