IMPI updates IP law to protect non-traditional TMs
The Mexican Institute of Industrial Property ( IMPI) has updated its IP law to allow for the protection of some non-traditional marks.
IMPI announced the amendments to trademark registrations and cancellations in May and published a blog post on the changes yesterday, June 21. The amendments will come into effect on August 10, 2018.
The amendments will provide for the protection of some non-traditional trademarks, allowing brand owners to register scents, holograms and colour combinations as trademarks.
IMPI has also updated its new prohibitions of certain names and images from being registered as trademarks.
It will be forbidden to register the name or pseudo name of a famous person, or names that may be associated with that person. The amendments will also prohibit the registration of an image of an individual or their identifiable voice or signature without his or her consent.
The amendments will also require brand owners to file a declaration of “real and effective use” on the third anniversary of a trademark’s registration. The registration will automatically lapse if the owner fails to file the declaration.
Under the changes, a trademark may be invalidated if its registration has been obtained without the consent of its legitimate owner. The mark can also be cancelled where it has been obtained through bad faith.
In 2016, Mexico introduced a new trademark opposition system. The changes mean that trademark applications will be published no later than ten days after filing. Oppositions must be filed 30 days after publication of the trademark and they must be based on absolute grounds or relative grounds.
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