Articles

The Brazilian Trademark Office (BPTO) opens public consultation on position marks

According to publication in the Official Gazette on April 13, 2021, the Brazilian Trademark Office (BPTO) has released the opening of a public consultation regarding the examination and registration of “Position marks”, as follow:

Brazilian Supreme Court grants preliminary injunction that puts pharmaceutical patents at risk

The judgment of the lawsuit that challenges the constitutionality of the sole paragraph of Article 40 of the Brazilian Patent Law (ADI no. 5,529) scheduled for April 07, 2021 was removed from the Supreme Court agenda in view of the urgent need to analyze a pandemic-related court action.

Operating virtually in pursuit of greater effectiveness

Over the past year the Brazilian courts and the Brazilian Patent and Trademark Office (BRPTO), along with most law firms in Brazil, have been adapting to the new reality brought about by the COVID-19 pandemic:

Off-field football dispute: Brazilianspray patent battle

In recent years a patent dispute about a spray used in football matches has persisted in Brazil. The spray is used tomark the distance between the defenders and the ball when a free kick is taken. When introduced, it was considered agame changer because it:

New guidelines for examining patent applications that involve computer-implemented inventions

On 29 December 2020 the Brazilian Patent and Trademark Office (BPTO) published the Guidelines for Examining Patent Applications Involving Computer-Implemented Inventions in Official Gazette 2608.

Life and death: protecting legacy through IP rights

In November 2020 the world lost the football legend Diego Maradona. His death brought up various issues regarding post mortem trademark rights. This article discusses the registration of proper names as trademarks in Brazil and explores the measures that parties can take to ensure that the legacy and goodwill associated with their intellectual property is preserved after their death.

Do ANVISA's new guidelines jeopardise the patentability of patent applications?

At the end of 2020, the National Health Surveillance Agency (ANVISA) published four guidelines on its prior consent procedure, which all pharmaceutical patent applications in Brazil must undergo before the Brazilian Patent and Trademark Office (BRPTO) conducts the technical examination:

Trademark co-ownership finally possible in Brazil

Although it has been almost one year since Brazil joined the Madrid Protocol, some key procedures for the national trademark registration process remain pending, including:

Legislative overview – Brazil

What statutes, regulations or case law govern IP rights in your jurisdiction? IP rights are governed by the Federal Constitution, the IP Law and the Copyright Law, as well as various international agreements (see below).

Growing e-commerce market entails increased brand protection measures

Rise in e-commerce: According to the latest Webshoppers report (42nd edition, produced by Ebit in partnership with Elo), Brazilian e-commerce grew by 47% in the first half of 2020, the highest recorded increase in the past 20 years. The report showed that sales growth was driven by a 39% increase in the number of orders compared with the first half of 2019, with 90.8 million orders placed. Sales increased by 47% to R38.8 billion over the same period.

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