PERU Law and Practice Contributed by: Alvaro Echeandía, Alfred Kossuth Wieland, Pilar Santillán Meza and Rodrigo Varillas Cueto, Thorne, Echeandia & Lema Abogados
does not contain the assignment of the invention in favour of the applicant. Annual fees must be paid in advance to main - tain the validity of the application and/or the invention patent once granted (the annual maintenance fee for an invention patent does not apply to industrial designs or utility models). The grace period for the payment of annuities is six months. If not paid, the application will be deemed abandoned, with no remedy possible. The process of granting a patent of invention involves the publication of the application in the electronic official gazette for opposition purpos - es, with 60 working days being the term for third parties to file an opposition. After publication, a patentability examination must be formally requested and substantive examination fees must be paid (only in case they have not been paid jointly with the filing fees). Objections to the patentability of the invention contained in the patentability examination must be resolved with - in 60 working days of notification (extendable for an additional 60 working days). If the substantive examination objections are not overcome by the applicant, or the objections are not answered within the relevant term, the patent application will be decided based on the contents of the patentability examination and, if applicable, will be rejected and/or partially granted. Although the resolution that rejects the patent can be appealed, it cannot be based on the modifica - tion of the description, claims or drawings. In addition, if substantive examination objections are not answered within the relevant term, no remedy will be possible, nor will it be possible to file an appeal against the rejection. The patent is granted for a term of 20 years cal - culated from the filing date of the application. The term for the granting of an invention patent
is about four years, while the term for the grant - ing of a utility model is reduced to half of the term for invention patents. Registrations before the DIN are constitutive of rights, so the absence of protection prevents infringement actions against unauthorised third- party users. Actions for infringement of industrial property rights are administrative proceedings before the DIN of INDECOPI, which may entail the grant - ing of precautionary measures of cessation of use, confiscation or immobilisation. The process is followed in double administrative instance with the Intellectual Property Chamber of the INDECOPI Court (SPI) acting as the second and last administrative instance. Within three months following its notification, the final deci - sions of the SPI may be challenged before the Administrative Court of the Judicial Power (PJ) via a contentious-administrative lawsuit (DCA). The filing of a DCA before the PJ does not sus - pend the effects of the challenged SPI decision, unless the PJ issues a non-innovative injunction. 7.2 Trade Marks The protection in Peru of distinctive signs (prod - uct trade marks, service marks, commercial slo - gans, trade names) is regulated by Decision 486, Common Regime on Industrial Property and by Legislative Decree No 1075, which contains complementary provisions of local application to Decision 486. Peru is a member of the Nice Agreement and as such applies the Nice Clas - sification to classify goods and services for trade mark registration purposes. The Directorate of Distinctive Signs of INDECOPI (DSD) acts as the first instance and the Intel - lectual Property Chamber of the Court for the Defense of Competition and Intellectual Property
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