South Africa:
Ethiopia Has Introduced An Online Trade Mark Filing System
30 April 2019
Adams & Adams
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The Ethiopian
Intellectual Property Office (EIPO), in collaboration with the
World Intellectual Property Office (WIPO), has
officially adopted an online trade mark filing system. This
development follows an agreement reached between EIPO and WIPO to
modernise the intellectual property structures in Ethiopia.
Ethiopia has performed well economically and replaced Kenya as East
Africa's largest economy in 2017. The government's
commitment to economic diversification has prompted a review of the
laws and processes that will permit further growth.
It is expected that the new system will change the culture of
doing business and obtaining trade mark registrations in Ethiopia,
and that the reduced reliance on hard copy records will improve the
efficiency of the EIPO overall.
The online system presently only facilitates the filing of
applications for the registration of trade marks. This means that
the prescribed fees and original supporting documents such as
Powers of Attorney, which are still required, will need to be
presented at the Registry by an agent once the online application
has been reviewed and approved by an examining officer.
It is hoped that the online filing system will contribute to the
issuing of more accurate trade mark registration certificates. The
very first online trade mark application was filed by Adams &
Adams on 8 April 2019.
The content of this article is intended to provide a general
guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought
about your specific circumstances.
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