Brazil joins Madrid System, reveals patent backlog plan
Brazil has announced two measures aimed at reducing the bureaucracy, costs and duration of trademark and patent processes.
As part of its efforts, the country has acceded to the Madrid System, which is administered by the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO). It will come into force on October 2, 2019 (three months after the deposit of the accession instrument).
Brazilian brand owners will be able to register marks in 120 other countries using one application, while overseas brand owners will benefit from lower costs when protecting their trademarks in Brazil through one filing via the Madrid System.
In an announcement published yesterday, July 3, WIPO Director General Francis Gurry, said: “We are absolutely delighted that Brazil, one of the world’s largest economies, has acceded to the international trademark system. This benefits brand owners in Brazil and across the globe. I hope other countries in the region follow suit.”
With Brazil’s membership, the Madrid System can now count each of the world’s ten largest economies—as calculated by the International Monetary Fund—as members. Brazil is the fifth Madrid System member from Latin America and the Caribbean.
At the same time, the Brazilian Patent and Trademark Office (INPI) and the Ministry of Economy announced another measure aimed at stimulating business in the country, in addition to accession to the Madrid System.
This measure, the Patent Backlog Plan, aims to reduce the number of backlog requests by 80% by 2021 and to reduce the average term of the patent grant to approximately two years from the request for examination.
Minister of Economy Paulo Guedes said that the initiative is a landmark in the Brazilian economy because IP is the most important asset in international negotiations.
He emphasised the cooperation with the Brazilian National Congress, in approving the adhesion to the Madrid System, and congratulated INPI for the development of its plan to combat the patent backlog.
According to INPI’s statistics, at the end of April 2019, there were around 158,005 applications waiting for a final decision. The average timeframe from the filing date to the first examination has reached around ten years.
Luiza Duarte Pereira, partner at Murta Goyanes, said: “INPI has built up a tremendous patent backlog that is hampering the functioning of the patent system.”
Under the backlog plan, INPI will incorporate any prior art searches conducted abroad into the examination of the patent applications in Brazil. The IP office carried out a similar pilot project in 2018.
According to INPI, 80% of the patent applications queued have already been evaluated in another country.
The IP office will then issue a requirement for the applicant to express their opinion on the cited documents and, if necessary, to make adjustments to the patent application.
Following a response, an INPI examiner will then assess whether or not the patent should be granted.
INPI said that this plan doesn’t require legislative changes or additional costs for the office.
Pereira added: “The plan aims to reduce the patent backlog by 80% up to 2021 and decrease the average time to reach a final decision to two years from the request for examination.”
Did you enjoy reading this story? Sign up to our free daily newsletters and get stories like this sent straight to your inbox.
Today's top stories:
