HAITI Law and Practice Contributed by: Vanessa Abdel-Razak, Ludsen Saint-Phar and Webster Registre, Cabinet Abdel-Razak & Associés
required to hold a registered trade mark, as oppo - sitions may be based on earlier unregistered rights, prior use, trade names, company names, copyright or bad faith, in addition to prior registrations. Oppo - nents – particularly foreign parties – must act through a locally admitted attorney or authorised agent, and in practice, legal representation is strongly recom - mended even for local opponents. Official opposition filing fees are relatively modest (often in the range of USD100–200), while attorneys’ fees typically range from USD500 to USD2,000, depending on the com - plexity of the case. Revocation or cancellation proceedings may be initi - ated by owners of prior rights, affected third parties, or any party demonstrating a legitimate interest; the Trade Mark Office itself does not usually act ex offi - cio to cancel registrations once granted. Standing is generally established by showing a legal, economic or competitive interest, such as ownership or use of a conflicting sign, market presence, or exposure to confusion or unfair competition. In copyright matters, actions may be brought by the author or rights hold - er, successors in title, or any party whose rights are adversely affected, subject to general civil law admis - sibility rules. 5.4 Opposition or Revocation/Cancellation Procedure Opposition procedure is administrative and largely paper-based. An opposition is filed with the Trade Mark Office within the statutory period following pub - lication of the application and must set out the legal and factual grounds relied upon. The applicant is then given an opportunity to submit a written response, and the Trade Mark Office may allow one or more rounds of written observations at its discretion. There is no formal discovery process, no depositions and no oral hearing as a matter of course; oppositions are decided on the basis of written submissions and documentary evidence, rather than motion practice or live testimony. Revocation or cancellation actions may be brought either before the Trade Mark Office, where the grounds fall within its administrative competence, or before the competent civil courts, particularly where broader issues of ownership, bad faith, unfair competition or
damages are raised. Copyright disputes are gener - ally handled by the civil courts rather than through an administrative office. Partial revocation or cancellation is possible in Haiti. A registration may be cancelled only in respect of cer - tain goods or services – for example, where non-use is established for part of the specification or where a ground for invalidity affects only a limited portion of the registration – allowing the remaining goods or services to remain protected. 5.5 Legal Remedies Against the Decision of the Trade Mark Office In Haiti, decisions of the Trade Mark Office may be challenged through administrative and judicial rem - edies. An applicant or interested party may first seek reconsideration or clarification from the Trade Mark Office where procedural issues or manifest errors are involved, although there is no specialised trade mark appeal board. Appeals against final decisions of refusal, opposition or cancellation are generally brought before the competent civil courts, following the ordinary rules of administrative and civil litigation. A decision must be final to be appealable; inter - locutory or procedural communications issued dur - ing examination are not normally subject to appeal. Appeals are filed before the civil courts with territorial jurisdiction over the Trade Mark Office, and the court reviews the legality and, where appropriate, the merits of the decision. Timescales vary significantly depend - ing on court workload, but first-instance proceedings typically take between 12 and 24 months, with further appeals potentially extending the process by several additional years. 5.6 Amendment in Revocation/Cancellation Proceedings Amendment is possible in revocation or cancellation proceedings, but only in a limited manner. The owner of the challenged trade mark may amend the regis - tration by restricting or narrowing the list of goods or services in order to address the grounds raised, most commonly in cases based on partial non-use or limited conflict. Amendments that would expand the scope of protection, alter the mark itself or otherwise affect the identity of the registration are not permitted.
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