Importance of Madrid Agreement

In the run-up to the implementation of a multi-jurisdictional (or at least pan-European) Community trade mark (CD), the relevance of the Madrid System was examined. Pressure on WIPO to maintain its relevance and strengthen the agreement by increasing membership, possibly through amendments, has increased. This led to the introduction of the Madrid Protocol, according to which a Community trade mark registration could be a `foundation` or `homeland` registration, on the basis of which an international registration could then be established. This mechanism is called “link determination”. The Protocol was signed by many countries as a result of significant lobbying efforts by WIPO, including most of the current members of the Madrid Agreement and some countries that are members of the European Union but were not members of the Madrid Agreement. The Minutes were published on 1 September. December 1995 and entered into force on 1 April 1996. In 1966 and 1967, an attempt was made to solve this problem by concluding a new treaty that would reflect the necessity of the time and not the world of the 1890s when the agreement was adopted. This led to the drafting of the Treaty on the Registration of Marks (TRT), which was adopted in Vienna in 1973 and entered into force in 1980 with five Contracting States, namely Burkina Faso, Congo, Gabon, the Soviet Union and Togo. In the absence of new accessions to the TRT and the small number of registrations since its inception, it was clear that the TRT was unlikely to replace the Madrid Agreement.

Accession to the Convention or Protocol includes accession to the “Madrid Union”. As of June 2019[Update], there were 104 members from 120 countries. The original treaty has 55 members, all of whom are equally parties to the Protocol (as Algeria on 31 September). Having entered the Madrid Protocol in October 2015, all members of the Madrid Agreement were also members of the Madrid Protocol, and many aspects of the Madrid Agreement no longer had practical effect). The term “Madrid Union” may be used to describe the legal systems that are parties to the Agreement or the Protocol (or both). [4] Under the Protocol, for example, it is possible to obtain an international registration on the basis of a pending trademark application, so that a trademark owner can effectively apply for international registration at the same time or immediately after filing an application in a member jurisdiction. In comparison, the agreement requires the trademark owner to already have an existing registration in a member jurisdiction, which can often take several months or even years. In addition, the agreement does not provide for the possibility of “converting” international registrations that have been “centrally attacked”. The Protocol has been in force since 1996 and has 100 members[5], making it more popular than the agreement, which has been in force for more than 110 years and has 55 members. [4] The main reason why the Protocol is more popular than the Agreement is that it introduced a number of amendments to the Madrid System that have significantly increased its usefulness to trademark owners.

The refusal shall be notified to the holder of the registration or his representative to the International Bureau, recorded in the International Register and published in the Official Journal. The procedure following a refusal (e.B appeal or review) shall be conducted directly by the competent administration and/or tribunal of the Party concerned and of the Holder without the participation of the International Bureau. However, the final decision on the rejection must be communicated to the International Bureau, which registers and publishes it. An application for international registration (international application) may be submitted only by a natural or legal person associated with a Party to the Agreement or Protocol by establishment, domicile or nationality. For companies with an international presence, the Madrid System offers a number of important advantages; In particular: To find out if the Madrid System is right for you, please contact your Novagraaf consultant or contact us below. It is possible to base an international registration on more than one application/registration in the UNITED Kingdom or on more than one EU trade mark application/registration for the same trade mark, but not on a mixture of EU and EU trade marks. Of course, we can handle the application process for you. (8) Including all overseas departments and territories. . . .