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Legal Principles on Intellectual Property Law: Trademarks; Paris Convention; Intellectual Property Code

  • The Philippines is obligated to assure nationals of countries of the Paris Convention that they are afforded an effective protection against violation of their intellectual property rights in the Philippines in the same way that their own countries are obligated to accord similar protection to Philippine Nationals. 
  • The Philippines is obligated to assure nationals of countries of the Paris Convention that they are afforded an effective protection against violation of their intellectual property rights in the Philippines in the same way that their own countries are obligated to accord similar protection to Philippine Nationals. 
  • In Mirpuri, 318 SCRA 516 (1999), the Court ruled that the essential requirement under Article 6bis of the Paris Convention is that the trademark to be protected must be “well-known” in the country where protection is sought. The Court declared that the power to determine whether a trademark is well-known lies in the competent authority of the country of registration or use.
  • Section 123.1(e) of R.A. No. 8293 now categorically states that “a mark which is considered by the competent authority of the Philippines to be well-known internationally and in the Philippines, whether or not it is registered here,” cannot be registered by another in the Philippines. Section 123.1(e) does not require that the well-known mark be used in commerce in the Philippines but only that it be well-known in the Philippines. 
  • While under the territoriality principle a mark must be used in commerce in the Philippines to be entitled to protection, internationally well-known marks are the exceptions to this rule.

Source:
FREDCO MANUFACTURING CORPORATION, PETITIONER, VS. PRESIDENT AND FELLOWS OF HARVARD COLLEGE (HARVARD UNIVERSITY), RESPONDENTS.
G.R. No. 185917. June 01, 2011
CARPIO, J.
Full text here


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