Opposition Procedures of Trademark in Vietnam

Trademark is the priceless asset of a company because of being used to distinguish goods or services of different organizations or individuals. Many international companies have found that others have registered trademark protection in Vietnam at National Offices of Intellectual Property (NOIP).

Because trademark is protected independently in each nation, it is easy for violators to abuse trademarks of other well-known companies for their interests in Vietnam. This could potentially put the real trademark owner’s under challenges when the clients or customers realize the product bearing the trademark they trust do not meet the standard they expected.

 

Opposition Procedures of Trademark in Vietnam

In Vietnam, after detecting their infringement registration process, you should submit an opposition notice to NOIP in Vietnam to prevent the violating trademark registration. To ensure your opposition shall be effective, you should enclose evidences and related documents.

With highly professional staff and great experience in IP aspect in Vietnam, ANT Lawyers, a qualified attorney and registered IP agent, could support you in opposition procedure of trademark in Vietnam.

Deadline for filing an opposition to a trademark application in Vietnam

The deadline for filing an opposition to a trademark application in Vietnam is stipulated particularly in the IP Law.

According to IP Law of Vietnam, during examination of trademark applications as from the date when a trademark application is published on the Industrial Property Official Gazette until prior to the date of decision on granting Certificate of trademark registration, an opposition request should be filed to the NOIP. Such request will not be accepted by the NOIP for handling if it is filed after the date of decision on granting trademark registration. However, under our current practice, the applicant could request for an acceleration examination, shorter than provided period of 09 months. Therefore please be noted that possible opposition should be filed as soon as possible.

Requirements

Pursuant to the IP Law, foreign opponents are not allowed to file opposition request directly at the NOIP but must authorize a lawful IP representative in Vietnam to proceed with such action based on a required original Power of Attorney (POA). Under current practice in Vietnam, a copy of POA may be acceptable for filing opposition and the original one could be filed later. However, the NOIP will not consider the opposition until the original POA is filed and all formality requirements are satisfied.

Trademark opposition Procedure in Vietnam

The opposition request must be in written form and the source of its accompanied supporting materials (if any) must be specified.

A possible opposition will be considered at the time of the trademark application’s examination as to substance.

As a general procedures, within 01 month (in fact, the time can extend to 02-04 months) as from the receiving date of our opposition, the NOIP will consider and then may convey its contents to the Applicant and fix about 01 month for them to present opinions. After receiving response of the Applicant (if they submit), the NOIP will inform and give the Opponent 01 month for filing response, submission of opinions.

In some cases, the NOIP may give conclusion upon consideration of opposition without conveying its contents to the Applicant if they think that it is clear enough to conclude. It is possible for the NOIP to organize conversation between the Opponent and the Applicant, upon request of the two parties, to clarify the matter (if necessary).

Upon considering the evidences submitted by the two parties, the NOIP will make a decision to accept opposition or not.

If you are looking for an experienced IP services in Vietnam to help you with your IP application, you should visit ANTLawyers.vn. Our attorneys have experience with the IP process and will work closely with you as you apply for your IP. 

 

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Measures to Prevent and Ensure Administrative Sanctions of Software Piracy in Vietnam

Vietnam is among countries with the highest rate of software piracy in the world, although the rate has reduced from 92% in 2004, to 81% in 2011, 78% in 2015 according to the report of BSA, The Software Alliance that promote legal software use and advocates for public policies that foster technology innovation and drive growth in the digital economy.

 

Computer software is protected as literary works, one of types of works eligible for copyright protection in accordance with Article 14 of Vietnam law on intellectual property 2005, amended and supplemented in 2009. Unlicensed software is unauthorized use or distribution of copyrighted software.  Copyright infringements include publishing, distributing, copying, using, leasing out, duplicating, importing, exporting a work without permission from the author or copyright holder according to Article 28 of Vietnam law on intellectual property 2005, amended and supplemented in 2009.

The government of Vietnam has been striving to coordinate between ministries to increase awareness and encourage the software license compliance. Further, Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism has coordinated with Ministry of Public Security to increase frequency of inspecting the software license compliance in Vietnam as part of intellectual property right enforcement effort.

According to the provisions of Article 215 of the 2005 Intellectual Property Law, there are measures under the law of Vietnam to prevent and secure administrative sanctions.

In the following cases, organizations and individuals may request Vietnam competent agencies to apply preventive measures and ensure administrative sanction as provided for in Clause 2, Article 215 of the 2005 Intellectual Property Law:

-An act of infringement of intellectual property rights is likely to cause serious loss and damage to consumers or society;

-Material evidence of the infringement is likely to be dispersed or there are indications that the offender will evade responsibility;

In order to secure enforcement of a decision imposing an administrative penalty, preventive measures and/or measures to secure enforcement of administrative penalties which may be applied in accordance with administrative procedures to acts of infringement of intellectual property rights shall comprise:

-Temporary detention of persons;

-Temporary custody of infringing goods, material evidence and facilities;

-Body searches;

-Searches of means of transport and objects; searches of places where infringing goods, material evidence and facilities are hidden;

-Other administrative preventive measures in accordance with the law on dealing with administrative breaches.

Our software piracy lawyers in Vietnam at ANT Lawyers always monitor legal regulations to update our clients with changes and provide the best service.

 

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When and How to Register Trademark to Protect IP Rights in Vietnam?

Considering trademark registration activities, the subject holder must comply with certain conditions to fulfill its trademark registration rights in Vietnam.

According to Article 13.1 Law on Intellectual Property amended in 2009:

-Organizations and individuals may register marks to be used for goods they produce or services they provide.

 

Trademark in Vietnam

-Organizations and individuals that conduct lawful commercial activities may register marks for products they are marketing but produced by others, provided that the producers neither use such marks for their products nor object to such registration.

-Lawfully established collective organizations may register collective marks to be used by their members under regulations on use of collective marks. For signs indicating geographical origins of goods or services, organizations that may register them are collective organizations of organizations or individuals engaged in production or trading in relevant localities. For other geographical names or marks indicating geographical origins of local specialties of Vietnam, the registration must be permitted by competent state agencies.

-Organizations with the function of controlling and certifying the quality, properties, origin or other relevant criteria of goods or services may register certification marks, provided that they are not engaged in the production or trading of these goods or services. For other geographical names or marks indicating geographical origins of local specialties of Vietnam, the registration thereof must be permitted by a competent state agency.

-Two or more organizations or individuals may jointly register a mark in order to become its co-owners on the following conditions: i) This mark is used in the names of all co-owners or used for goods or services which are produced or traded with the participation of all co-owners; ii) The use of this mark causes no confusion to consumers as to the origin of goods or services.

If the subject falls into one of the cases mentioned above, they will have the right to register the mark at the National Office of Intellectual Property. After the subject condition has been met, consideration should be given to the condition that a mark can be protected as a trademark. In particular (i) It is a visible mark in the form of letters, words, drawings or images including holograms, or a combination thereof, represented in one or more colors; (ii) It is capable of distinctive goods or services of the mark owner from those of other subjects.

However, there are some exceptions even when the mark satisfies those two conditions. For example, marks identical with or confusingly similar to national flags or national emblems; or marks identical with or confusingly similar to emblems, flags, armorial bearings, abbreviated names or full names of Vietnamese State bodies, political organizations, socio-political organizations, socio- politico-professional organizations, social organizations or socio-professional organizations or with international organizations, unless permitted by such bodies or organizations shall not be protected as a trademark.

In order to register for protection of a trademark, the registrant should pay attention to the subject matter and the conditions for the trademark to be protected in order to avoid being refused at the registration authority because of the failure to meet the conditions for the subject or the conditions for protection.

IP Attorney in Vietnam at ANT Lawyers, a Law firm in Vietnam shall be providing the advice to client to help the clients evaluate and file registration for trademark, patent, copyright and other IP related services.

 

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Intellectual property protection abroad for Vietnamese enterprises

The development of international supply chains has become a critical success factor for big companies, and should be seen as important key for products of developing countries to gain entry into high standard market such as USA, European Countries, and Japan. However, many Vietnam companies have experienced problems in shifting their supply chain abroad as well as managed their intellectual property such as geographical indication, trademarks. 

 

Protecting Intellectual Property Rights Abroad for Vietnam Enterprises

On October 24^th, 2017, Vietnam Intellectual Property Association (VIPA) in cooperation with the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO), Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry (VCCI), International Association for the Protection of Intellectual Property Rights (AIPPI) organized the seminar “Protecting intellectual property rights abroad for Vietnamese enterprises” to provide Vietnam companies value information for protecting their Intellectual Property right in the Fourth Industrial Revolution and global supply chain development.

All the experts have strongly recognized the important role of intellectual property protection abroad for Vietnamese enterprises and introduced:

-Introduction to the International World of Intellectual property

-Protecting a valuable asset- How to protect your Brand with Madrid

-Options to protect an invention: Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT) and trade Secrets

-Introduction to the international design System- Hague

-Other WIPO services, Tools and Products

-About International Association for the Protection of Intellectual Property- AIPPI (Association Internationale pour la Protection de la Propriété Intellectuelle) Vietnam is a member of the WIPO and is a signatory to the Paris Convention for the Protection of Industrial Property. It has acceded to the Patent Cooperation Treaty and the Madrid Agreement Concerning the International Registration of Marks, and in 2004 joined the Berne Convention. Therefore, the Vietnamese enterprises should file trademarks, patents or industrial designs by international systems for saving cost and managing the registration procedures effectively. However, it is suggested that the international Bureau of WIPO does not decide whether trademarks, patents or industrial designs are eligible for protection or not, and the final decisions must depend on Intellectual Property law of each country i.e. Vietnam. For differences of laws in every country and difficult techniques when preparing Intellectual Property application, applicants should find valuable assistant from Intellectual Property agent.

If you are looking for an experienced IP attorneys to help you with your IP application, you should visit ANT Lawyers.vn - An IP services in Vietnam. Our attorneys have experience with the IP process and will work closely with you as you apply for your IP. We routinely match inventors with experienced IP attorneys for a free consultation on our platform and offer a money back guarantee. 

 

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Benefits of retaining a Real Estate Dispute Lawyers in Vietnam

Why Client Should Retain Real Estate Dispute Lawyers in Vietnam?

Due to changes in law attracting foreigners to come to live, and invest in Vietnam, foreigners have growing interest in investment and acquiring real estate. However, as real estate is valuable assets, the law on real estate ownership and real estate transactions are complicated, especially for foreigners.

 

Under the land ownership regime in Vietnam, land belongs to the entire people with the State acting as the owner’s representative and uniformly managing land. Hence, in Vietnam, the land users will have the land use right without the private ownership of the land.  Land law 2013 does not allow foreigner to have land use rights in Vietnam. It only allows foreign invested enterprises to be permitted to use land through the form of land allocation or lease. 

Although foreigners do not have land use rights in Vietnam, they are allowed to own houses in Vietnam under the Law on Housing. In addition, the Law on Real Estate Business has certain limitations for foreign investors to conduct real estate business in Vietnam and must meet the legal requirements.

Foreign investors investing in Vietnam wish to use the land to conduct business activities, or intend to conduct real estate business in Vietnam, or simply a foreigner wishing to purchase and own real estate in Vietnam should be aware of the legal provisions on conditions of implementation, orders and procedures to of the transactions to minimize risks. The assistance of the lawyers on real estate in Vietnam shall be worthwhile.

Real estate  dispute lawyers in Vietnam would have in-depth knowledge of the Land Law, Law on Housing, Law on Real Estate Business and related regulations. In addition, they would have practical experience in implementing legal procedures, handling disputes, and supporting real estate transactions in Vietnam. The real estate lawyers could explain the restrictions on land use rights of foreign organizations and individuals in Vietnam and the conditions for conducting business in real estate in Vietnam. The lawyers at request could assist the foreigners with the process and procedures to work with state agencies to obtain land use rights for enterprise and home ownership rights for individual more effectively.

When conducting transactions related to real estate such as buying, selling, transferring, renting, leasing, real estate lawyers could also provide assistance in in legal due diligence of the real estate to minimize legal risk to clients. It is important to evaluate the legal status of the property, the owner of property, whether property is in dispute, or subject to additional requirements of government before being sold by the developer and the people eligible for entering into the transaction. In addition, the lawyers in Vietnam can advise clients to draft or review the agreements, sales contract as well as the process to legalize the process to comply with the law in Vietnam.

ANT Lawyers - a real estate dispute law firm in Vietnam with international standard, local expertise and strong international network. We focus on customers’ needs and provide clients with a high quality legal advice and services. For advice or service request, please contact us via email ant@antlawyers.vn, or call us +84 24 730 86 529.

 

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How Can IPR Holder Protect Intellectual Property Rights in Vietnam?

An intellectual property right holder shall have the right to apply the following measures to protect the intellectual property rights in Vietnam of such holder:

 

To apply technological measures to prevent acts of infringement of its intellectual property rights;

To request any organization or individual who commits an act of infringement of the intellectual property rights of the holder to terminate such act, make a public apology or rectification, and pay damages;

To request the competent State body to deal with acts of infringement of its intellectual property rights in accordance with the provisions of this Law and other relevant laws;

To initiate a lawsuit at a court or a claim at an arbitration centre to protect the legitimate rights and interests of the holder.

Organizations and individuals who suffer loss and damage caused by acts of infringement of intellectual property rights or who discover acts of infringement of intellectual property rights which cause loss and damage to consumers or society shall have the right to request the competent State body to deal with such acts in accordance with the provisions of this Law and other relevant laws.

Organizations and individuals who suffer loss and damage or who are likely to suffer loss and damage caused by acts of unfair competition shall have the right to request the competent State body to apply the civil remedies stipulated of IP Law and the administrative remedies stipulated in the law on competition.

Our Intellectual Property Lawyers in Vietnam always follow development in IP Laws to provide client with update.

 

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Subject Matters of Intellectual Property Rights in Vietnam

Subject matters of intellectual property rights in Vietnam is divided into three groups included: subject matter of copyright, subject matter of industrial property rights, subject matter of rights to plant varieties. In details:

 

Protect Intellectual Property Rights in Vietnam

-The subject matter of copyright shall comprise literary, artistic and scientific works; the subject matter of copyright related rights shall comprise performances, audio and visual fixation, broadcasts and satellite signals carrying coded programmes.

-The subject matter of industrial property rights shall comprise inventions, industrial designs, designs of semi-conducting closed circuits, trade secrets, marks, trade names and geographical indications.

-The subject matter of rights to plant varieties shall comprise plant varieties and harvested materials.

Pursuant to Intellectual Property right 2005 (amended in 2009), Intellectual property rights means rights of an organization or individual to intellectual assets comprising copyright and copyright related rights, industrial property rights and rights to plant varieties. For example, software computer program can be protected under Copyright, or name of a product can be protected under Industrial property right that is Trademark or the outward appearance of a car can be protected as Industrial design.

However, intellectual property rights are generated and established based on certain grounds:

Firstly, copyright shall arise at the moment a work is created and fixed in a certain material form, irrespective of its content, quality, form, mode and language and irrespective of whether or not such work has been published or registered. For instance, a musician is about to write a song, however, the idea of the song still bears in mind of the musician and have not written down yet. At that time, copyright of the musician still does not generate.

Secondly, related rights shall arise at the moment a performance, audio and visual fixation, broadcast or satellite signal carrying coded programmes is fixed or displayed without causing loss or damage to copyright. Related right is the right related to copyright. Proceeding to above example, when the musician has finished writing his song and is sung by the singer on stage, the right of the singer to sing the song of the musician is related right.

Thirdly, different grounds for the generation and establishment of industrial property right. As said above, industrial property rights include 7 subject matters: inventions, industrial designs, designs of semi-conducting closed circuits, trade secrets, marks, trade names and geographical indications. These subjects have different grounds for generating and establishing right:

-Industrial property rights to an invention, industrial design, layout design, mark or geographical indication shall be established on the basis of a decision of the competent State body to grant a protection title in accordance with the registration procedures;

-Industrial property rights to a trade name shall be established on the basis of lawful use thereof;

-Industrial property rights to a trade secret shall be established on the basis of lawful acquirement of the trade secret and maintaining confidentiality thereof.

Fourthly, rights to a plant variety shall be established on the basis of a decision of the competent State body to grant a plant variety protection title in accordance with the registration procedures

It is wise to consult the advice of a IP attorneys in Vietnam to help assist you with your patent. We are a legal marketplace with quality lawyers who are knowledgeable in various areas of the law—including patents.

ANT Lawyers is a law firm in Vietnam, recognized by Legal500, IFLR1000. We are an exclusive Vietnam member of Prea Legal, the global law firm network covering more than 150 jurisdictions. The firm provides a range of legal services to multinational and domestic clients.

 

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