SOMALIA Law and Practice Contributed by: Fahad Arteh, Just Legal Services
obligation to submit copies of published works to des - ignated authorities. It also provides for administrative procedures to record rights. However, these proce - dures are not fully implemented in practice, and there is no standardised or consistently applied application process. As a result, there are no fixed or routinely applied fees for filing copyright registrations. 3.9 Refusal of Registration The law allows for the refusal of copyright registration when a work does not meet statutory requirements or when formal conditions have not been satisfied. Although decisions regarding registration can, in prin - ciple, be subject to administrative or judicial review, such refusals and appeals are uncommon in practice because there is no fully functioning copyright regis - tration authority. As a result, questions of authorship or ownership are usually resolved through evidentiary assessment in court proceedings rather than through administrative refusal mechanisms. 3.10 Related Rights Copyright protection can exist alongside trade mark protection, particularly when a work includes logos or graphic elements that also function as trade marks. Each type of protection is governed by its own legal framework and enforced independently. The law also recognises certain related rights – such as those of performers and producers – though these are not extensively developed in practice. When copyright overlaps with other legal areas, any disputes are resolved by the courts on a case‑by‑case basis, apply - ing the Copyright Law together with general principles of civil, commercial, and unfair competition law.
the Ordinance also acknowledges the significance of prior unregistered use in certain circumstances. Earlier use may limit or invalidate a later application or registration, especially where the later mark could mislead the public or conflict with an existing mark already in use by another party. Nevertheless, regis - tration remains the most effective method of secur - ing and enforcing trade mark rights in Somalia, as it provides legal certainty and access to both civil and criminal remedies. 4.2 Trade Mark Register Somalia maintains a trade mark register administered by the Somali Intellectual Property Office (SIPO), which operates under the Ministry of Commerce and Industry. The register records trade mark applica - tions, registrations, renewals, assignments, and other recordable interests. In practice, access to the register is facilitated directly through SIPO, as there is currently no comprehensive public online search database. As a result, clearance searches are typically conducted through manual reviews of available SIPO records, combined with market investigations. SIPO provides public notice of trade mark applica - tions and registrations through its official publications, including its journals and online platforms, which serve as the primary sources of publicly accessible information. 4.3 Term of Registration A trade mark registration takes effect from the filing date of the application and remains valid for ten years from the date of grant. It may be renewed indefinitely in successive ten‑year periods upon payment of the prescribed renewal fees. If a registration is not renewed within the required period, it will lapse. The Ordinance allows a six‑month grace period for late renewal, subject to payment of a surcharge. In cases where a registration has been expired for a longer period, renewal may still be possi - ble under the statute; however, such renewal does not affect any rights that third parties may have acquired during the period in which the registration had lapsed.
4. Trade Mark Registrations and Applications 4.1 Trade Mark Registration
Trade mark rights in Somalia are primarily obtained through registration under the Trade Marks Ordinance No 3 of 22 January 1955. Registration grants the owner exclusive statutory rights to use the mark for the goods covered and to prevent others from using identical or confusingly similar marks. Although reg - istration is the main foundation for enforceable rights,
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