Trade and Service Marks
-
-
- Paris Convention for the Protection of Industrial Property, London Act, and Articles 13 to 30 Stockholm Act.
- Madrid Agreement for the Repression of False or Deceptive Indications of Source on Goods, London Act.
- Nice Agreement for the International Classification of Goods and Services (10th Edition).
- Convention Establishing the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO), since December 30, 1986.
-
- Industrial and commercial marks, collective marks.
-
- Power of attorney duly legalized up to a Lebanese consul.
- Name, address, nationality and line of activity of the applicant.
- List of goods and services according to the International Classification (10th Edition).
- Priority document, in Convention cases, has to be filed with a sworn Arabic translation within three months form the filling date.
-
- A single application may cover one or several classes of goods and/or services on payment of an additional fee.
- Multiple or partial priorities may be claimed at the application date or within 2 months thereafter.
- Trademarks contrary to public order or morality or rep[resenting national or foreign decorations are not registrable.
- The trademark application is examined on relative grounds too, but with no possibility for the Trademark Office to issue any rejection decision based on cited antecedents, except for well-known marks.
- Time frame 7 – 15 days.
- Appeal against any decision of the Minister of Economy and Commerce refusing an application should be filed within thirty days from the date of notification.
- Registered trademarks are published in the Official Gazette within 3 months with no opposition or objection proceedings.
- Validity: 15 years.
-
- A trademark registered in black and white is also protected if it is used in color.
- A trademark covers the goods and services for which it has been registered and similar goods and services.
- Lebanese courts grant an extended protection for well-known marks.
-
- Use is not required for obtaining or renewing a trademark registration.
-
- Renewal for fifteen years is always possible before expiration date.
- Grace period of three months is allowed for nationals of the International Union of Paris.
- A renewal certificate is issued within 2 weeks from the renewal application filing date.
-
- Trademark Assignments should be recorded on the Trademark Register to be enforceable against third parties.
- Trademarks may be assigned onerously or gratuitously, with or without the goodwill of business.
- Late recordal of a trademark assignment entails heavy fines.
-
- Trademark licenses should be recorded on the Trademark Register to be enforceable against third parties.
- Licenses may be granted onerously or gratuitously, with or without the goodwill of business.
- Late recordal of a trademark license does not entail any fine.
-
- The exclusive right to the mark (individual or collective) belongs to the first registrant.
- Contestations based on bona fide prior trademark use in Lebanon are possible within a period of five years from the filing date of the improperly registered mark.
- Proof of prior trademark use should be in writing.
- A trademark registration becomes incontestable against a prior user’s cancelation action after 5 years, unless it is proven in writing that the trademark registrant has been aware, at the trademark application date, of the prior user’s trademark rights.
-
- Trademark cancellation actions may be brought by any interested person at any time, on relative and absolute ground.
-
- Trademark infringement is sanctioned by civil and criminal penalties.
- Ex parte precautionary measures, including seizure of bogus goods, are available.
- Injured parties may file trademark infringement civil or criminal actions.
-
- Trademark owners may join the legal action filed by the district attorney.
