PORTUGAL Law and Practice Contributed by: Ana Rita Paínho, Mariana Costa Pinto and Leonor Ruano Silveira, SÉRVULO
submissions. The same fees apply when filing a request for a trade mark expiration (termination) declaration, as referenced in 5.2 Legal Grounds for Filing an Opposition or Cancellation . For revocation or cancellation proceedings, the applicable fees are EUR228.56 for online filings and EUR457.12 for paper filings. Attorney fees are variable. 5.4 Opposition or Revocation/ Cancellation Procedure A trade mark opposition must be filed with the INPI within two months of publication, with the possibility of a one-month extension upon request. The trade mark applicant has the right to contest the opposition and is granted the same two-month period, also extendable by one month, to submit a response. As part of its defence, the applicant may request that the opponent provide proof of genuine use of its earlier trade mark. If such a request is made, the INPI will notify the opponent to submit evidence of use. Failure to do so or the submis - sion of insufficient proof will result in the rejec - tion of the opposition. The procedure is entirely document-based, with no oral hearings. Both parties may present argu - ments and supporting evidence before a final decision is issued. If the opposition is upheld, the trade mark is refused; otherwise, it proceeds to registration. The final decision may be partial, applying only to some of the goods or services designated in the application. Revocation and cancellation actions relating to trade marks are brought before the INPI unless a counterclaim of revocation is raised during a judicial proceeding, in which case the courts have jurisdiction.
Partial revocation or cancellation is possible when the grounds affect only some goods or services, allowing the remaining registration to remain valid. 5.5 Legal Remedies Against the Decision of the Trade Mark Office Decisions issued by the INPI regarding the grant - ing or refusal of trade marks, as well as decisions concerning cancellation, revocation or expiration of trade marks, are subject to appeal before the Portuguese Intellectual Property Court, located in Lisbon. The appeal must be filed within two months from the date of publication of INPI’s final decision in the Industrial Property Bulletin. If an opposing party is involved, they are sum - moned by the Court and granted a period of 30 days to submit their response. The INPI, how - ever, is never considered an opposing party in these proceedings. 5.6 Amendment in Revocation/ Cancellation Proceedings The trade mark owner can voluntarily waive some or all of their rights during the process. If this happens, the party requesting revocation is notified and must decide whether to proceed or withdraw. 5.7 Combining Revocation/Cancellation and Infringement If a revocation is requested as a counterclaim within an infringement action before the Intellec - tual Property Court, both matters will be closely connected and addressed together. However, if a revocation request for the same trade mark has already been submitted to the INPI, it can - not be filed again as a counterclaim in ongoing proceedings before the court.
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