ARMENIA Law and Practice Contributed by: Sarkis Knyazyan, Svetlana Mkrtchyan, Anahit Aloyan and Rita Parzyan, Concern Dialog
between copyright and related rights and each object is protected separately without any over - lap. 4. Trade Mark Registrations and Applications 4.1 Trade Mark Registration In order to acquire all exclusive rights prescribed by trade mark law, a trade mark must be regis - tered. Unregistered trade marks are not protect - ed, and owners of unregistered trade marks do not have the right to exclude others from using identical or confusingly similar trade marks. However, the Armenian IP Office may refuse reg - istration of a trade mark (i) which is confusingly similar to a trade mark being in use in Armenia or outside of Armenia, and (ii) is likely to cause confusion among consumers in Armenia, and (iii) if the applicant acted in bad faith (ie, knew or could have known about the use of the earlier mark). All types of trade marks are registered by the same standards. However, trade marks that are not distinctive may become registrable, if they acquire distinctiveness (secondary mean - ing). 4.2 Trade Mark Register Armenia has one principal trade mark register for the whole territory of the Republic of Armenia. All registered trade marks are publicly available and may be searched on the official website of the Armenian Intellectual Property Office. Trade mark rights are acquired through registra - tion, in Armenia. It is not advisable to use any trade mark without registration. Therefore, it is normal practice in Armenia to search for prior trade marks before applying to register a mark. It is advisable to use not only local, but also the WIPO international database of trade marks des -
ignating Armenia. It is also advisable to search for unregistered trade marks, since the Armenian IP Office may refuse registration of a mark, if an identical or confusingly similar mark is in use in or outside of Armenia. 4.3 Term of Registration Trade marks are registered for a period of ten years in Armenia and may be renewed for anoth - er ten-year period perpetually. Trade mark owners may also renew registrations within six months after the expiration date and with 50% additional state/official fee. There are no other requirements for renewing trade mark registrations. 4.4 Application Requirements Armenia allows multi-class trade mark applica - tions, but each application must relate to one trade mark and contain a description of the mark. The application must be filled in Armenian, and all accompanying foreign language docu - ments should be translated into Armenian. The application must be accompanied with a receipt confirming the payment of official/state fees for filing and examination. The state registration fee is paid after the Armenian IP Office makes a decision on registration of the mark. Trade mark applications may be filed electronically. The images/drawings of a trade mark must be attached to the application. The Armenian law does not require specimen of use, the date of first use in commerce or creation in commerce, or sworn declaration of accuracy. The official/state trade mark filing fee for one trade mark in one class is AMD30,000. The official/state fee for each additional class is AMD15,000. The official/state examination fee, which is paid together with the filing fee is
18
CHAMBERS.COM
Powered by FlippingBook