SINGAPORE Law and Practice Contributed by: Yvonne Tang, Lim Siau Wen and Ruby Tham, Drew & Napier LLC
Marks that consist of the shape of goods will be refused registration under Section 7(3) of the Trade Marks Act if, inter alia, they consist exclu - sively of: • the shape that results from the nature of the goods themselves; • the shape of goods that is necessary to obtain a technical result; or • the shape that gives substantial value to the goods. This will be particularly relevant for the protec - tion of industrial designs as trade marks. Collective and certification marks Part 8 and the First and Second Schedules of the Trade Marks Act govern collective and certi - fication marks. An applicant for registration of a collective mark/certification mark must file with the Registrar regulations governing the use of the mark. For a collective mark, the regulations must spec - ify: • the persons authorised to use the mark; • the conditions of membership of the associa - tion; and • where they exist, the conditions of use of the mark, including any sanctions against misuse. For a certification mark, the regulations must indicate: • who is authorised to use the mark; • the characteristics to be certified by the mark; • how the certifying body is to test those char - acteristics and to supervise the use of the mark; • the fees (if any) to be paid in connection with the operation of the mark; and
• the procedures for resolving disputes. Geographical indications The Geographical Indications Act 2014 provides for the protection of geographical indications in relation to goods, and for matters connected therewith. Section 4 provides that, subject to the provisions of the Act, an interested party of goods identified by a geographical indication may bring an action against a person for car - rying out an act to which the section applies in relation to the geographical indication. However, there are various exceptions, such as Section 13, where Section 4 does not apply to the use in the course of trade by a person of that person’s name or the name of that person’s predecessor in business, except where the name is used in such a manner as to mislead the public. Specific Marks Protected by Statute Sections 56 and 57 of the Trade Marks Act pro - vide that a trade mark may not be registered if it consists of or contains: • the flag of a Convention country (defined as a country or territory that is a party to the Paris Convention or a member of the WTO); • armorial bearing and other state emblem of a Convention country; • official sign and hallmark adopted by a Con - vention country; and • armorial bearing, flag, emblem, abbreviation and name of an international organisation of which one or more Convention countries are members. Protection of Well-Known Marks Singapore protects marks that are well known outside Singapore but are not yet in use or regis - tered in Singapore. However, such protection will only be afforded where it is shown that the mark in question is also well known in Singapore.
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