SWITZERLAND Law and Practice Contributed by: Peter Schramm, Timmy Pielmeier, Michael Ritscher and Andrea Schäffler, MLL Legal
the public domain, which is usually a ground for refusal), it needs to be proven that the sign has been used extensively as a trade mark in Swit - zerland for several years. A Swiss trade mark application must include the personal information of the applicant, the mark itself and a list of the goods and services for which the trade mark is intended to be used. Any natural or legal person may register a trade mark in Switzerland. Multiple-class applications are admissible. Any applicant that is not domi - ciled or resident in Switzerland must designate an address for service in Switzerland. In cases where the potential trade mark owner is not based in Switzerland, an address for service in Switzerland must be specified. If necessary, the applicant also needs to provide a declara - tion of priority and, if required, indicate whether the mark is a guaranteed mark or a collective mark. After submitting the application, it is then examined for admissibility by the IPI. Fees for trade mark applications amount to CHF350 for online applications (otherwise CHF450) for up to three classes (CHF100 for each additional class). A decision regularly takes between three and five months. Expedited appli - cations (decision in about four weeks) are avail -
defence in opposition or infringement proceed - ings. The requirements for establishing genuine use are use of the trade mark in commercial trade, in Switzerland, as an indication of origin in relation to the claimed goods/services. The use must reach an economically meaningful extent (genu - ine intention of satisfying the markets’ demand). 4.6 Consideration of Prior Rights in Registration The trade mark office does not consider the existence of prior rights in its examination of an application for registration (see 2.2 Essential Elements of Trade Mark Protection ). 4.7 Revocation, Change, Amendment or Correction of an Application Any applicant can modify their trade mark free of charge during the entire registration process. Material changes are admissible but result in a postponement of the filing/priority date. At a later stage, when the trade mark has been reg - istered, modifications to the list of goods and services (restrictions only), for example, may be made in exchange for an administrative fee. Once the trade mark has been registered, the sign cannot be changed. Amendments require a formal request, which can be submitted in writing, via email to tm.admin@ ekomm.ipi.ch or via the IPI online platform. 4.8 Dividing a Trade Mark Application Irrespective of a partial assignment, the list of goods and services of a trade mark application or registration can be divided at any time in such a way so that two or more trade marks or appli - cations for registration are created. The prereq - uisite is a written application by the owner, which
able for an additional fee of CHF400. 4.5 Use in Commerce Prior to Registration
Use prior to registration is not required under Swiss law. If a trade mark is not used for the goods and services for which it obtained protec - tion, it may be subject to invalidity proceedings before the IPI or the civil courts after the grace period has expired (see 2.4 Use in Commerce ). Invalidity for lack of use may also be raised as a
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