Legislation Overview
- Full Title: Federal Decree by Law Concerning Trademarks - Law Type: Federal Decree-Law - Issued Date: 20 Sep 2021 - Effective Date: 02 Jan 2022 - Sector: Economy and Business - Number of Articles: 130 - Current Status: Active
Summary
This Federal Decree-Law establishes a comprehensive legal framework for trademarks in the United Arab Emirates. It defines what constitutes a trademark, outlines the registration process, and sets forth the rights and obligations of trademark owners. The law also introduces provisions for collective, control, and geographical indication trademarks, as well as penalties for infringement. This legislation aims to protect intellectual property rights and promote a robust business environment in the UAE. (Federal Decree by Law Concerning Trademarks, 2021, Arts. 1-61)
What is the scope and purpose of this law?
The purpose of this law is to regulate the registration, protection, and use of trademarks in the United Arab Emirates. It applies to any distinctive form, including names, words, signatures, letters, symbols, figures, addresses, stamps, drawings, photos, inscriptions, packaging, figurative elements, shapes, color, set of colors, or a combination thereof, used to distinguish the goods or services of one organization from another. (Federal Decree by Law Concerning Trademarks, 2021, Art. 2)
What are the key definitions?
The law provides the following key definitions: - "State" refers to the United Arab Emirates. (Federal Decree by Law Concerning Trademarks, 2021, Art. 1) - "Ministry" and "Minister" refer to the Ministry of Economy and the Minister of Economy, respectively. (Federal Decree by Law Concerning Trademarks, 2021, Art. 1) - "Grievance Committee" is the Trademark Grievance Committee formed by the Minister's resolution. (Federal Decree by Law Concerning Trademarks, 2021, Art. 1) - "Collective Trademark" is a trademark used to distinguish the goods or services of member entities of a certain organization with legal personality. (Federal Decree by Law Concerning Trademarks, 2021, Art. 1) - "Geographical Indications" are indicators denoting that a commodity has originated in a territory of a WTO member state or a region, location, or place within such territory. (Federal Decree by Law Concerning Trademarks, 2021, Art. 1)
What are the main obligations and requirements?
The key obligations and requirements under this law include: - Registering trademarks with the Ministry's Trademark Register. (Federal Decree by Law Concerning Trademarks, 2021, Art. 5) - Submitting trademark registration applications in accordance with the conditions, controls, and procedures specified in the Executive Regulations. (Federal Decree by Law Concerning Trademarks, 2021, Art. 7) - Renewing trademark registrations before the expiration of the protection period. (Federal Decree by Law Concerning Trademarks, 2021, Art. 20) - Obtaining the owner's consent or submitting an application to register a famous trademark for identical goods or services. (Federal Decree by Law Concerning Trademarks, 2021, Art. 4)
What are the rights and protections?
The law grants the following rights and protections to trademark owners: - The right to register a trademark in accordance with the provisions of the law. (Federal Decree by Law Concerning Trademarks, 2021, Art. 6) - The right to assign, transfer, or pledge a registered trademark. (Federal Decree by Law Concerning Trademarks, 2021, Arts. 28-29) - The right to license the use of a registered trademark. (Federal Decree by Law Concerning Trademarks, 2021, Arts. 30-34) - The right to seek customs clearance measures to prevent the import of goods infringing on the registered trademark. (Federal Decree by Law Concerning Trademarks, 2021, Arts. 45-48)
What are the penalties for non-compliance?
The law prescribes the following penalties for non-compliance: - A fine of not less than AED 5,000 and not more than AED 1 million for using a trademark in violation of the law. (Federal Decree by Law Concerning Trademarks, 2021, Art. 49) - A fine of not less than AED 10,000 and not more than AED 1 million, or imprisonment for a period not exceeding one year, or both, for counterfeiting a registered trademark. (Federal Decree by Law Concerning Trademarks, 2021, Art. 50) - A fine of not less than AED 20,000 and not more than AED 2 million, or imprisonment for a period not exceeding two years, or both, for importing, possessing, or selling goods bearing a counterfeit trademark. (Federal Decree by Law Concerning Trademarks, 2021, Art. 51) - A fine of not less than AED 50,000 and not more than AED 5 million, or imprisonment for a period not exceeding five years, or both, for using a famous trademark without authorization. (Federal Decree by Law Concerning Trademarks, 2021, Art. 52)
How does this law interact with other UAE legislation?
This Federal Decree-Law interacts with several other UAE laws, including: - Federal Law No. (1) of 1972, on the Competences of Ministries and the Powers of the Ministers - Federal Law No. (5) of 1985, Enacting the Civil Code - Federal Law No. (11) of 1992, Enacting the Law of Civil Procedure - Federal Law No. (35) of 1992, Enacting the Code of Criminal Procedure - Federal Law No. (18) of 1993, Enacting the Commercial Code - Federal Law No. (1) of 2006, on Electronic Transactions and Commerce - Federal Law No. (19) of 2016, on Combating Commercial Fraud - Federal Decree-Law No. (31) of 2021, Enacting the Penal Code - Federal Decree-Law No. (32) of 2021, on Commercial Companies (Federal Decree by Law Concerning Trademarks, 2021, Preamble)
When did this law come into effect and what are the transitional provisions?
This Federal Decree-Law Concerning Trademarks came into effect on 2 January 2022. (Federal Decree by Law Concerning Trademarks, 2021, Art. 61) The law does not specify any transitional provisions.
Source Documents
This article analyses Federal Decree by Law Concerning Trademarks for legal research and educational purposes. For the purpose of interpretation and application, reference must be made to the original Arabic text. In case of conflict, the Arabic text prevails. This does not constitute legal advice.