- North & South America
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trademark law
The trademark law in Mexico is the Promotion and Protection of Industrial Property Law, which was designated on June 25, 1991 and came into effect on June 28, 1991. In Mexico, the acquisition of trademark rights is based on the principle of registration. The Mexican Industrial Property Promotion and Protection Law stipulates that commodity trademarks, service trademarks, collective trademarks, advertising phrases, and place of origin names can be registered in accordance with the law. Mexico adopts the International Classification of Goods and Services. When registering a trademark, the goods and services that require protection and their respective categories should be specifically listed.
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Registered types
1. Denomination, letters, numbers, graphics, color combinations, and holograms;
2. Three-dimensional shape;
3. Product name, name or company name;
4. The proprietary name of a natural person;
5. Voice;
6. Odor
7. Multiple operational elements or image elements. -
Prohibited registration situations
1. The technical name or commonly used name of the product and service to be registered;
2. Words, phrases, names, or metaphorical elements commonly used or universal in the current language;
3. Three dimensional shapes or holograms in the public domain;
4. Descriptive marks of the products and services to be registered;
5. Isolated letters, numbers, or colors;
6. Translation, spelling changes or constructions of unregistered words, and transliteration of unregistered symbols;
7. Copy or imitate the emblem of any shield, flag, or symbol of any country, state, city, or equivalent political department.
8. Denomination, acronym, symbol, document emblem, international organization, government or non-governmental organization;
9. Copying or imitating official logos or seals, banknotes, or domestic or foreign coins;
10. Copies of decorations, medals, or other officially recognized awards;
11. Names of origin, geographical indications, names, or local indications that are characterized by the manufacture of certain products or services;
12. The name, surname, nickname, or pseudonym of a person with reputation, recognition, or prestige;
13. Names that may be confused with the titles of literary or artistic works, identical or similar names, and copying or imitating elements of the work;
14. May cause signs of error among the public;
15. According to IMPI standards, identical or similar logos that may cause confusion with well-known trademarks in Mexico;
16. The natural person's own name or identical or similar marks that may cause confusion with the trademark during the registration process, which have been previously proposed or have been proposed and are valid;
17. Content that violates public order, morality, good customs, or legal provisions. -
Duration
The Mexican trademark is valid for 10 years from the date of registration, and can be renewed after the expiration of the validity period. An application for renewal can be made six months in advance, with each renewal lasting for 10 years. There is no limit to the number of times, and the renewal period is 6 months (with additional fees).
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The participating countries' treaties and organizations include
Currently, Mexico is a member of the Paris Convention for the Protection of Industrial Property, the Nice Agreement on the International Classification of Goods and Services for the Purposes of Trademark Registration, the Lisbon Agreement for the Protection of Appellations of Origin and their International Registration, and the World Intellectual Property Organization.
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It should be noted that
It should be noted that Mexican trademark owners who obtained trademark registration after August 10, 2018 must submit a declaration of use to the Mexican Industrial Property Office within three months after the trademark has been registered for three years. Failure to submit this declaration of use will result in the cancellation of the registered trademark. In addition, when submitting a renewal application for a trademark, a declaration of use must also be submitted. If not submitted according to regulations, the trademark will also be cancelled.
1. Single country application: Directly file a trademark application with the Mexican Industrial Property Office
2. Madrid designates Mexico for application
After receiving a trademark registration application, the Mexican Trademark Office will conduct a search of the applied trademark to determine whether it can be protected. After receiving a trademark registration application, the Mexican Trademark Office will publish a notice on its official website for a period of 6 months. If no one raises any objections during this period, the trademark can be protected. If the applicant discovers that someone else has already registered the same or similar trademark, they can file an objection application with the Mexican Trademark Office.
After receiving the trademark registration application submitted by the applicant, the Mexican Trademark Office will conduct a formal examination, including a legality examination of the application, power of attorney, trademark design, list of goods/services, applicant information and other documents. If the examination is passed, the Trademark Office will issue a "Trademark Acceptance Notice" to the applicant; If the examination fails, the applicant will be notified in writing and the reasons will be explained.
The examination of trademark registration in Mexico is conducted in accordance with the Madrid Agreement on the International Registration of Marks and the relevant protocols of the Madrid Agreement on the International Registration of Marks. During the examination process, the Mexican Intellectual Property Office mainly examines the distinctiveness of the trademark, whether it violates the prior rights of the prior application, whether it violates the principle of good faith, and whether there are other violations of legal provisions. After the registration of a Mexican trademark, the applicant can renew it within one year (up to a maximum of 12 months), and each renewal application requires payment of a fee. If it is found in the application for trademark renewal that there are identical or similar trademarks, one can use the invalidation procedure to protect their legitimate rights and interests.
After the examination of the Mexican trademark registration application, the trademark registration applicant may publish their trademark registration application on the official website, which will be published by the trademark examiner. From the date of publication of this announcement, anyone may raise objections to the trademark. The objection period is 6 months, starting from the date of publication of the announcement. The objector must submit a written objection to the Mexican Patent and Trademark Office (hereinafter referred to as the "Patent Office") within 3 months from the date of receipt of the objection notice. The applicant may submit a written defense to the Patent Office within 30 days from the date of receiving the objection notice. According to Articles 38 and 41 of the Mexican Patent Law, if the applicant fails to submit a defense within the prescribed time limit without justifiable reasons, the trademark application will be rejected. If the objector is dissatisfied with the decision of the Mexican Patent and Trademark Office to reject the trademark application, they may appeal to the Federal Supreme Court of Mexico within three months from the date of receipt of the notification.
① The registration period for trademarks in Mexico is 10 years, calculated from the date of application.
② After applying for trademark registration in Mexico, proof of use must be submitted within 12 months, otherwise the trademark will be revoked.
③ The trademark applied for registration has a preliminary announcement period of 6 months from the date of application, and anyone can raise objections to the trademark. The objection procedure is voluntary, and those who are dissatisfied with the objection ruling can appeal to the Mexican court.
1. Name and address of the applicant - (Provide identification documents in the name of a natural person; for applications made by a company, a photo or scanned copy of the business license is required; for applications made in the name of an individual, it is recommended to apply in the name of a legal person to avoid the issuance of examination opinions by the Trademark Office of the applicant country regarding the qualifications of the applicant)
2. Provide the style for applying for a trademark - (For letter trademarks, provide text; for graphic trademarks, provide high-definition illustrations; for graphic trademarks, indicate the specified color or apply for an unspecified color)
3. Specify the category of goods or services for the trademark application and select the corresponding subcategory in the category of the country of application - (there is no limit to the number of subcategories, and 20 subcategories can be selected by default);
4. Fill out one trademark application form, which must be signed by the applicant or by an agent.
