Author: Patpol

On March 5, 2020 during the 15th Managing IP EMEA Awards in London, Patpol was awarded the Firm of the Year 2020 in Poland (Prosecution).

Managing IP EMEA Awards is one of the most important events in the world, during which the best intellectual property professionals are awarded. It gathers key patent and law firms and their clients, constituting a unique platform for the exchange of experiences and opinions. The awards are a prestigious international confirmation of the unique intellectual property competences of the awarded companies.

“We are pleased that the international group of our clients and IP market players appreciated the quality of our consultancy and the professionalism of our patent and trademark attorneys. We operate in this industry for over fifty years, trying to optimally combine the unique experience on the Polish market with the challenges of the modern, constantly changing world.” – comments Izabella Dudek-Urbanowicz, managing director of Patpol.

Joanna Piłka and Aleksandra Kryśka have been honored and recommended for cooperation by respondents to the annual market research, carried out every year for the last ten years and called WTR 1000.

The experts specialize in trademark and industrial designs law and are experienced long-term practitioners with extensive experience in both trademark and designs protection strategies, IP portfolio management as well as contentious issues or trademarks and designs registration.

The WTR1000 ranking also distinguishes the best law firms specializing in trademark and industrial design law – Patpol is once again delighted to be among the highly recommended companies in Poland.

WTR (World Trademark Review) is an independent information portal dealing with issues related to trademarks for IP practitioners around the world.

Today we are answering a number of questions that are continuously puzzling you: When the symbol (R) can be used? What does (T) stand for? What other symbols can also be used to denote one’s rights?

These questions are repeatedly sent to our office’s e-mail, so let me discuss the relevant legal issues to clarify the returning ambiguities.

It provides a straightforward notice that a trademark is registered. The use of the symbol (R) is governed by the Polish Law on Industrial Property (hereafter: the PIP Law). According to the currently binding regulations, this symbol can only be used by a person, in the name of whom the right of protection for a trademark has been granted.

“The right holder may indicate that their mark was registered by placing the letter (R) enclosed within a circle next to the trademark.”  – art. 153 par. 1³ of the PIP Law

This means that a trademark, next to which the symbol (R) appears, has already gone through the registration procedure before the Polish Patent Office and it has been granted a right of protection.

Read full article HERE.

We are delighted to inform about our latest industry recognition as the 2020 Best IP Advisor in Central & Eastern Europe by the jury of INIFA Innovation IP Forum and Awards.

The gala dinner organized by Leaders League publishing house was held yesterday (28th of Jan.) in Paris where our managing director, Izabella Dudek-Urbanowicz accepted the award on behalf of the team. The purpose of this competition is rewarding the Best IP Advisors for their performances on the long run. 

Taking this opportunity we would like to congratulate all the winners and nominees recognized during the event.

According to legal definition, a trademark is any sign which is capable of distinguishing the goods of one undertaking from the goods of other undertakings, and also capable of being represented in the Trademark Register in a way that allows to determine clearly and precisely the subject of granted protection.

Apart from the most common kinds of trademarks, such as word, word-figurative or figurative, yet another kind is a three-dimensional trademark, which is nothing else but the shape of a product or the shape of its packaging.

Read full article HERE.

As I have already mentioned in my first article in this series (“Everyone can see what a trademark is like” – Part I), a trademark, according to legal definition, is any sign which is capable of distinguishing the goods of one undertaking from those of other undertakings, and which can be represented in the Trademark Register in a way that allows to determine clearly and precisely the subject of granted protection.

Yet another kind of trademarks – apart from those which are the most popular, such as word, word-figurative, or figurative marks – is a positional trademark.

Read full article HERE.

The gourmets of deli meats are undoubtedly well-familiar with the word-figurative trademark which represents the characteristic logo of a master butcher along with the words “HENRYK KANIA”.

The owner of the trademark – the company Zakłady Mięsne Henryk Kania (“Meat Factory Henryk Kania”) fell into financial trouble, which in the worst-case scenario may end up in declaring bankruptcy. There are many speculations as to the company’s future, while negotiations are pending and recovery plans are awaiting their implementation. The company’s property is in the scope of interest of three other companies, including HK Trade, the subsidiary of Zakłady Mięsne Henryk Kania.

Regardless of the outcome, let us have a closer look at what may happen to the company’s non-material assets such as trademarks, if the company is taken over.

Read the full articule by Joanna Rafalska on IP BLOG.

In latest article in The Trademark Lawyer Magazine, our expert Aleksandra Kryśka explains the opposition procedure to applications for registration of a trademarks in the light of revolutionized over 3 years ago amendment to the Law on Industrial Property in Poland.

Read the article in english HERE.

After the years 2016 and 2017, which were abundant in national trademark applications filed in the Polish Patent Office, a significant decrease in the number of applications occurred in the year 2018.

However the number of the European Union Trademarks filed in 2018 reflects the upward trend which has been observed in the recent years in the growing number of EUTM applications filed by the Polish companies.

Read the full article by Joanna Piłka HERE.

We are delighted to inform that Aleksandra Kryska our Deputy Head of Trade Mark and Design Department, and Patent Attorney, has been accepted as a member of INTA’s Non-Traditional Marks Committee for the 2020-2021 term

This committee’s role is to develop and advocate the International Trademark Association (INTA) policy regarding the balanced protection of nontraditional trademarks. Aleksandra will bring wealth of experience to the group as an active INTA member since 2005 and a patent attorney since 2009.

Congratulations!