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Amendments to Trademark Laws

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Feb 17, 2016 (Newsletter Issue 3/16)
Latvia
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Changes in Applicable Laws and Fees


The Parliament of the Republic of Latvia adopted a new law on the Industrial Property Institutions and Procedures that entered into force on January 1, 2016.

The most significant changes affect the functioning of the Board of Appeals and procedures before this institution. Starting from January 1, 2016, the Board of Appeals is renamed to the Industrial Property Board of Appeals. Its members will be appointed by the Cabinet of Ministers and will be full time employees of this dispute settlement body, rather than employees of the Patent Office of the Republic of Latvia (LPO), as it was before.

A significant change is also introduced to the applicable procedural law by replacing the administrative procedure with the civil one. The party which is not satisfied with the decision of this body is entitled to appeal the decision to the Riga Vidzeme District Court.

Further, civil insurance is now mandatory for all patent attorneys that operate in the Republic of Latvia. Also, the Association of Patent Attorneys of Latvia will develop a Code of Ethics that will be legally binding for all patent attorneys operating in the Republic of Latvia.

Another major change affects the LPO itself. Starting from January 1, 2016, the LPO is no longer a state funded budget institution, but a self-financed state institution. This change will ensure that the LPO will be able to invest more resources into development of the industrial property system in the Republic of Latvia, including more e-services, development of the patent database, various awareness raising activities, and other initiatives that will benefit the existing and potential users.

The Latvian PTO has also changed its fees. A full list of official fees is available here (in Latvian only). For more information on the changes and for a list of renewal and other relevant fees, please click here.

Source: www.lrpv.gov.lv