Article 10 of the Industrial Property Code empowers trademark owners to seek the transfer of a trademark when it has been unfairly registered by a commercial agent or representative without the owner's consent. This provision, although often overlooked and infrequently utilized, serves as a crucial recourse for legitimate trademark holders. A recent ruling from the Court of Cassation concerning the trademarks HOLLIS and OCEANIC underscores the importance of this legal framework. The relevant statute stipulates that if a trademark identical or indistinguishably similar to an existing mark is registered by an agent or representative without authorization, the rightful owner can petition the court to halt the use of the trademark and transfer its registration, unless the agent can demonstrate a legitimate reason for the registration. This provision has its roots in the now-repealed Decree Law No. 556, which initially required identical trademarks for such actions, but subsequent interpretations by the Court of Cassation have clarified that indistinguishable similarity suffices. In a recent case, the new owner of the HOLLIS and OCEANIC trademarks, previously held by American Underwater Products, contended that the defendant had registered these marks in bad faith after distributing products in Türkiye. The Intellectual Property Court determined that the defendant acted as an unauthorized agent and ordered the transfer of the OCEANIC trademark to the plaintiff while invalidating the defendant's registration based on bad faith. However, the court found the HOLLIS mark was neither identical nor indistinguishably similar, leading to its invalidation rather than transfer. The upholding of this decision by higher courts reinforces the notion that Article 10 is a valuable tool for trademark owners, often underutilized in favor of seeking mere invalidation. By pursuing transfer requests, owners can maintain their trademark rights effectively from the date of protection, avoiding potential obsolescence.
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This news is summarized and processed by the IP Topics artificial intelligence algorithm.
Read the full article on the original webpage: https://gun.av.tr/insights/articles/article-10-a-hidden-gem-of-the-turkish-industrial-property-code?utm_source=mondaq&utm_medium=syndication&utm_content=articleoriginal&utm_campaign=article
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