A number of important legislative amendments come into effect on 1 June 2018. More information about them is given below. We have also provided a brief report on the seminar held on 17 May.
Review of the seminar held on 17 May
On Thursday 17 may BOIP held a seminar on the cancellation procedure and the new powers of the Benelux Court of Appeal. Over a hundred people attended the seminar.
The new procedure was explained by Eline Schiebroek (lawyer, BOIP) and Camille Janssen (senior lawyer, BOIP). After this explanation, Adonna Alkema (Hofhuis Alkema Groen Advocaten) and Johan Dedeckel (Gevers) held a panel discussion with the participants on the new subjects.
The new powers of the Benelux Court of Appeal were explained by Xandra Kiers-Becking (Benelux-Court of Appeal and The Hague Court of Appeal) and Pieter Veeze (senior lawyer, BOIP). Finally, there was a panel discussion between Xandra Kiers-Becking, Pieter Veeze and Fernand de Visscher (Simont Braun). After the seminar there was an opportunity to for informal talks during a networking session with refreshments.
The speakers' presentations can be downloaded using the links below.
Cancellation procedure
The cancellation procedure, officially known as the invalidation or revocation procedure, is a simple, fast administrative procedure which allows the cancellation of a registered trademark from the register. The holder of an earlier trademark may object to a more recent trademark that conflicts with his own trademark, but he may also be required to cancel a trademark on absolute grounds or because it is not being used.
The basis for the cancellation procedure is given in Article 2.30bis of the Benelux Convention on Intellectual Property (BCIP).
More information on the cancellation procedure
Differences between the opposition and cancellation procedures
We have set out below the most important differences between an opposition and a cancellation procedure.
| Opposition | Cancellation / Revocation or invalidation | |
|---|---|---|
| When? | Since 2003 | From 1 June 2018 |
| Against | Recent Benelux applications or accelerated registrations and recent Benelux international marks | All Benelux trademarks and international trademarks valid in the Benelux |
| Term | 2 months after publication | None |
| Required | Older trademark valid in the Benelux |
|
| Grounds | Conflict with older trademark |
Conflict with older trademark / no DC / unused: 'Everything BOIP already does' Please note, not yet: bad faith, filing by an agent, geographical designation (probably January 2019) |
| Extra | 1 June 2018:
|
Will also apply to cancellation |
| Fees | € 1,030 (€+ 103 per claimed trademark above the 3rd) |
€ 1,400 (€+ 140 per claimed trademark above the 3rd) |
| Cost reference | yes ( € 1,030) | yes ( € 1,400) |
| Language | As a rule, the defendant's language Opponent can also express a preference |
As a rule, the defendant's language Petitioner can also express a preference |
| Submission | Online or paper | PDF form, submitted using contact form |
| Cooling-off | yes | no |
Benelux Court of Justice
As from 1 June, the Benelux Court of Justice will have a new second chamber acting as a de facto body that is competent to judge BOIP’s decisions. The current competence to appeal against BOIP’s refusal and opposition decisions at the three national courts will be no longer in force. The aim is to obtain more unambiguous decisions.
More information?
In case you have any questions on the new procedure or the competences of the Benelux Court of Justice, please do not hesitate to contact us via legal@boip.int.