PADEMARK - Patent Attorneys/Trademark Attorneys in Vietnam

On 16/01/2009, the second-instance court of People's Supreme Court in Ho Chi Minh City opened the review trial for an administrative case where Vien Son Company sued against the Decision No. 1352/QĐ-SHTT dated 29.10.2007 of the National Office of Intelletual Property of Vietnam (NOIP) on invalidility of the Trademark Certificate No. 77256 for the trademark “KINGMAX”. As the result, the Court accepted the appeal from NOIP, correcting a part of the fisrt instance verdict, not accepting the law suit of Vien Son Company and upholding the Decision No. 1352/QĐ-SHTT.

“KINGMAX” is a trademark for computer spare parts of Kingmax Company (Taiwan) which is widely used in Vietnam. However, in Vietnam, this trademark is protected under the ownership of Vien Son Company (the sole agent of Kingmax Company in accordance with the Trademark Certificate No. 77256 dated 24.11.2006). Based on this Certificate, Vien Son Company requested authorities to apply administrative measures against a number of companies that were importing computer spare parts produced by Kingmax Company. Based on a request for invalidity from an importing company, NOIP issued Decision No. 1352/QĐ-SHTT invalidating the Trademark Certificate No. 77256 on the ground that the owner of the Trademark Certificate did not meet the requirements under Article 14.2.c of Decree No. 63/CP of the Government of Vietnam.

Opposed to the Decision No. 1352/QĐ-SHTT, Vien Son Company filed a law suit before People's Court in Ho Chi Minh City. In the first instance verdict returned on 22.10.2008, People's Court in Ho Chi Minh City accepted the law suit of Vien Son Company and cancelled the Decision No. 1352/QĐ-SHTT. Howver, by the appeal of NOIP, the first instance verdict was revoked by the second-instance court of People's Supreme Court in Ho Chi Minh City.

(www.noip.gov.vn)

On 22 October 2008, the Ministry of Industry and Trade of Vietnam (MOIT) issued Circular No. 12/2008/TT-BCT on Admission Procedures with regard to Requests of Administrative Handling of IPRs Violations before Market Control Agencies.

The Circular provides for the first time:

(i) Types of IPRs violations that can be eligible for being handled under administrative procedures;

(ii) Requirements concerning the formality of requests;

(iii) Internal procedures within Market Control Agencies for handling of such requests;

(iv) Coordination mechanism between Market Control Agencies and other competent authorities in dealing with IPRs violation from the production stage to distribution and selling stage.

The Vietnamese version of the Circular can be downloaded here. The English version of the Circular will be available soon.

www.pademark.com  

Dear distingished clients,

I would like to inform you that as from 1 October 2008, telephone and fax numbers of the Hanoi Office of our Company have been changed by adding number "3" before the old numbers.

The updated contact details of the Hanoi Office are read as follows:

Hanoi Office:

I highly appreciate your attention.

Taking this oppotunity, I would like to express our special thanks to you who have been relying on the services of our Company so far. 

Best regards,

Forty-Fifth Series of Meetings of the Assemblies of Member States of WIPO is scheduled to be taken place in Geneva, Switzerland from September 22-30, 2008.

The Memeber States will discuss and make important decisions that will have great impacts on the operation of WIPO and the international intellectual property system in the years to come.

The issues to be approved at these Meetings, among other things, will include:

- Appointment of the New Director General;

- Report on the sessions of the Committee on Development and Intellectual Property (CDIP);

- Report on the Work of the Standing Committee on Copyright and Related Rights (SCCR), including the Protection of Audiovisual Performances and Protection of the Rights of Broadcasting Organizations;

- Report on the Work of the Advisory Committee on Enforcement (ACE), and the Enforcement of Intellectual Property Rights;

- Report on the Work of the Intergovernmental Committee on Intellectual Property and Genetic Resources, Traditional Knowledge and Folklore (IGC);

- Report on the Work of the Standing Committee on the Law of Patents (SCP);

- Matters Concerning Internet Domain Names;

- Exchange of Priority Documents in the Area of Patents;

- Matters Concerning Article 6ter of the Paris Convention;

- Matters Concerning the Madrid Union;

- Matters Concerning the Hague Union;

- Matters Concerning the Lisbon Union;

- Matters Concerning the IPC Union;

- Matters Concerning the PCT Union;

- Matters Concerning the Patent Law Treaty.

The brief report of these Meetings will be available on our website (http://www.pademark.com ) soon after the Meetings.