COSTA RICA Law and Practice Contributed by: Harry Zurcher, Marco López Volio and Kristel Faith Neurohr, Zurcher, Odio & Raven
4.6 Consideration of Prior Rights in Registration The only prior rights that could be raised in Costa Rica are: • claiming priority based on an application filed in a country that is part of the Paris Convention; or • if the trade mark has been declared famous and/or notorious. No other prior rights are considered when examining an application. Costa Rica applies very strict criteria based on the fact that each application is independent and must be analysed independently. In general, letters of consent and/or coexistence agreements are not authorised, and their use is extremely restricted. The exception applies when both companies belong to the same economic group and the relationship is demonstrated by a capital stock certification that establishes their relatedness. 4.7 Revocation, Change, Amendment or Correction of an Application In Costa Rica, changes, amendments or corrections can be made during the registration process of a trade mark or even once registered, if this amendment does not imply a significant modification of the trade mark, and regarding the list of goods or services, if this is a limitation, as adding additional goods or services is not permitted. 4.8 Dividing a Trade Mark Application It is possible to divide an application at any time dur - ing the registration process into two or more appli - cations. The only requirement is to submit a request for the division to the Trademark Office and pay the official fee. A division will not be admitted if it implies extending the list of products or services filed in the initial application, but the list may be reduced or lim - ited. Each fractional application will retain the filing date of the initial application and, when applicable, the right of priority.
certified by a notary public, by virtue of which they agree to reduce or limit the list. 4.4 Application Requirements The trade mark application requirements are as fol - lows. • The name and address of the applicant, or if it is a legal entity, the place of incorporation. • The trade mark whose registration is requested. • A reproduction of the trade mark, in the case of word marks with special graphics, shapes or colours, or figurative, mixed or three-dimensional marks with or without colour. • A translation of the trade mark, when it is constitut - ed by some denominative element with a meaning in a language other than Spanish. • A list of the goods or services for which the trade mark is or will be used, grouped by classes according to the Nice International Classification. Both single-class and multi-class applications are allowed. The filing fee is USD50. Individuals, legal entities, trade bodies and foreign applicants can register a trade mark. A notarised power of attorney granted by the applicant is required. 4.5 Use in Commerce Prior to Registration No evidence of use must be filed with a trade mark application. However, if a registered trade mark is not in use for five consecutive years, any third party can request its cancellation. A trade mark is considered in use when the prod - ucts or services that it protects have been placed on the market with that trade mark, in the quantity and in the manner that normally corresponds, taking into account the dimension of the market, the nature of the products and the modalities under which they are commercialised. A trade mark is also considered in use, regarding exported products or services provided abroad from Costa Rica.
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