Industrial Property Legislation

EDA AKKAYA MERVE KUTUKCUOGLU

Table of Contents

What is Industrial Property Legislation?

The industrial property legislation, which the president approves of the republic on 09.01.2017, goes into effect on 10.01.2017 by publishing in Official Gazette.

This law includes the applications about law, brand, geographical indication, design, patent and petty patent, and the registration and the process after the registration. Also, this law includes law enforcement and penal sanction for the violation of these rights.

What Are The Novelties of Industrial Property Legislation?

In parallel to the EU regulations, the brands’ administrative cancellation for going into effect after seven years. The duration for the registration of the brands becomes shorter.
With Industrial Property Law, the name of Turkish Patent Industry is changed to Turkish Patent and Brand Institution. The short name is regulated as “Turkish Patent.”
It is regulated that the duration of the protection of a registered brand is ten years from the application, and the renewal of this duration of production is made with 10-year periods.
In case of presenting the letter of consent of the previous brand owner, which the notary approves to the Turkish Patent and Brand Institution, the application cannot be rejected.
According to law, inventions of universities have a right to take patents.
There should be a guaranteed brand under the control of the brand owner and which clarifies the common features of the management, the way of productions, the geographical origin of the products and the quality of the products.
Persons who have the right to use the registered geographical sign and traditional product name can use these with emblems on the product or package. For geographical signs, it is obligatory to use the emblem.

The Duration of Production is Ten Years

Any objection to the rejection of registration of an application of the brand published in the bulletin can be made in 2 months from the application time.
The protection time of the registered brand is ten years from the application time. This duration can be renewal with ten years periods. Brand rights can become a subject in the contract of license for a part of or for all the products, which are registered.
The court can decide the caducity of the brand according to related articles. The ones who have benefits, public prosecutors or related state institutions or organizations can require the caducity of the brand from the court. If there is a decision for the brand’s caducity, the production done with the law has become invalid.
The brand’s right is done when the protection time is done, or there is no renewal in this duration. Also, if the brand owner gives up on the brand’s right is done.

Trademark Infringement and Punitive Articles

A person who manufactures or sells goods, offers or sells, sells, imports or exports, sells, possesses, transports or stores goods for commercial purposes by infringing upon the trademark of another person by citing or filing a petition for up to 3 years imprisonment and up to 20 thousand days shall be punished with a judicial fine.

The person who removes the mark indicating that it is brand protected without authorization from the goods or packaging shall be sentenced to 1 year to 3 years imprisonment and up to 5 thousand days in judicial fine.

If the person is not authorized, shall be given the right to transfer the trademark right of another person, license or pledge, shall be sentenced to 2 years to 4 years imprisonment and up to 5 thousand days in judicial fine.

Guarantee Trademark

Under the control of the trademark owner, many marks will be the mark of guarantee that guarantee the common features, production methods, geographical origin and quality of those enterprises.

Guarantee trademark, trademark owner, or the goods or services will not be available economically connected to the enterprise.

Collective Mark

The mark is used as a token by manufacturing, trade, or service businesses in the law. The collective mark will be used to distinguish the goods or services of the group enterprises from those of other enterprises.

Products in The Scope of Protection

In the law, the geographical right is regulated along with the traditional product name. In this context, the regulation on the registration of the traditional product name is introduced.

The publication period of the design applicants will be reduced from 6 months to 3 months. Turkish Patent and Trademark Authority decisions may be appealed. The report submission period on the inspection of geographically marked products shall be reduced from 10 years to 1 year.

The combination of natural and human elements, food, agriculture, mining, handicrafts and industrial products that comply with the conditions in force will benefit from the geographical indication or traditional product name protection provided that they are registered.

A mark indicating a product identified with a locality, area, region or country from which it originates in terms of its distinctive character, reputation or other characteristics shall be referred to as a geographical indication.

The names originating in the territory of a geographical region, territory or exceptional circumstances, all of which are derived from natural and human elements specific to this geographical area and whose production, processing and other transactions are all within the boundaries of this geographical area, shall be the origin of the names.

Names that identify products made within the boundaries of the geographical area of which at least one of the production, processing and other operations originating from a specified geographical region, region, or country, identified concerning its distinctive character, reputation or other characteristics, are identified by this geographical area. Names traditionally used to designate a product that does not have a geographical name and does not contain a geographical name settled daily may also be a name of the origin or merchandise mark.

Names that have not been included in the name of the origin or merchandise mark and which have been traditionally used for at least 30 years to describe a product in the relevant market shall be defined as traditional product names if they originate from traditional manufacturing or processing methods or traditional combination or traditional raw materials or materials.

Article Keywords: Industrial Property Legislation, Turkish Patent Industry, Turkish Patent, Industrial Property Law, Trademark, Collective Mark, Traditional Product.

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