UK Government confirms position on EU registered rights
The UK Government has published a paper which signals its intention to grant all European Union registered trade mark and design right holders an equivalent UK right.
The UK Government has published a paper which signals its intention to grant all European Union registered trade mark and design right holders an equivalent UK right after the end of the transition period, which is planned to end on 31st December 2020.
This is the latest Brexit paper from the UK Government and highlights the points in the European Commission’s draft withdrawal agreement that have been “agreed at negotiators' level, and will only be subject to technical legal revisions in the coming weeks”.
The paper outlines an intention to create an equivalent “cloned” right, with the same filing and priority dates and with no examination required. However whether this process will incur a cost is still being negotiated.
The opening part of the agreed text reads:
1. The holder of any of the following intellectual property rights which have been registered or granted before the end of the transition period shall, without any re-examination, become the holder of a comparable registered and enforceable intellectual property right in the United Kingdom, as provided for by the law of the United Kingdom:
(a) the holder of a European Union trade mark registered in accordance with Regulation (EU) 2017/1001 of the European Parliament and of the Council 27 shall become the holder of a trade mark in the United Kingdom, consisting of the same sign, for the same goods or services;
(b) the holder of a Community design registered and where applicable published following deferral of publication in accordance with Council Regulation (EC) No 6/200228 shall become the holder of a registered design right in the United Kingdom for the same design;
Click here to read the full document – green indicates agreement, yellow where negotiators agreed on the policy objective, and white indicates where negotiations are ongoing.
Some of the other areas and points of detail are still being negotiated, and will need agreement in due course. CITMA will continue to lobby and engage with ministers, parliamentarians, government officials and key stakeholder on all of these.
CITMA is meeting with the Intellectual Property Office later this week, and with Minister for Intellectual Property, Sam Gymiah MP, next week. At these meetings we will be raising issues around the points of detail in the withdrawal agreement, as well as rights of representation.