CHAPTER 76 RIGHTS TO THE MEANS OF INDIVIDUALIZATION OF A LEGAL ENTITY, GOODS, WORKS, SERVICES, AND ENTERPRISES

Russian Civil Code 4 part

CHAPTER 76. RIGHTS TO THE MEANS OF INDIVIDUALIZATION OF A LEGAL ENTITY, GOODS, WORKS, SERVICES, AND ENTERPRISES

§ 1. Right to a Trade Name

Article 1473. Trade Name

1. A legal entity that is a commercial organization shall act in civil circulation under its trade name, which is defined in its by-law documents and is included in the Single State Register of Legal Entities upon official registration of a legal entity.

2. The trade name of a legal entity shall contain an indication of its organizational and legal form and the actual name of the legal entity, which shall not consist solely of words designating a kind of activity.

3. A legal entity shall have a full name and has the right to have an abbreviated name, both in the Russian language. A legal entity shall have the right to have also a full and/or abbreviated trade name in the languages of the peoples of the Russian Federation and/or foreign languages.

A trade name of the legal entity in the Russian language and the languages of the peoples of the Russian Federation may contain foreign borrowings in Russian transcription or in transcriptions of the languages of the peoples of the Russian Federation correspondingly, with the exception of terms and abbreviations reflecting the organizational and legal form of the legal entity.

4. A trade name of the legal entity shall not consist of:

1) full or abbreviated official names of foreign states, and also words derived from such names;

2) full or abbreviated official names of federal bodies of state authority, bodies of state authority of subjects of the Russian Federation and bodies of local self-government;

3) full or abbreviated names of international and intergovernmental organizations;

4) full or abbreviated names of public unions;

5) signs that are contrary to public interests and also to principles of humanity and morality.

The trade name of a state unitary enterprise may contain an indication that such an enterprise belongs to the Russian Federation or to a subject of the Russian Federation correspondingly.

Inclusion in the trade name of a legal entity of the official name of the Russian Federation or Russia, and also of words derived from this name shall be allowed with the permission issued in accordance with the procedure set forth by the Government of the Russian Federation if over seventy-five percent of the shares of stock of the joint-stock company belong to the Russian Federation. Such permission shall be granted without an indication of its validity period and may be withdrawn in case of disappearance of the circumstances by virtue of which it has been granted. The procedure for grant and withdrawal of permissions shall be provided for by law.

In case of withdrawal of permission for the inclusion in the trade name of a legal entity of the official name of the Russian Federation or Russia, and also words derived from this name, the legal entity within three months shall be obliged to introduce the changes in its by-law documents.

5. If a trade name of the legal entity does not comply with the requirements of Paragraphs 3 or 4 of the present Article, the body effecting official registration of legal entities has the right to bring a suit against such a legal entity to compel a change of the trade name.

Article 1474. Exclusive Right to a Trade Name

1. A legal entity has the exclusive right of use its trade name as means of individualization in any manner not contrary to a law (the exclusive right to a trade name) including by its indication on signs, letterheads, bills and other documentations, in announcements and advertising, and on goods and their packaging.

Abbreviated trade names, and also trade names in the languages of the peoples of the Russian Federation and foreign languages shall be enforced as an exclusive right to the trade name provided that they are included in the Single State Register of Legal Entities.

2. Disposition of the exclusive right to a trade name (including by its alienation or granting to another person the right to use the trade name) shall not be allowed.

3. Use by a legal entity of the trade name identical to the trade name of another legal entity or confusingly similar to it shall not be allowed if the aforesaid legal entities conduct similar activity and the trade name of the second legal entity was included in the Single State Register of Legal Entities earlier than the trade name of the first legal entities.

4. A legal entity who has violated the provisions of Paragraph 3 of the present Article shall be obliged on demand of the rightholder to discontinue the use of the trade name identical to the trade name of the rightholder or confusingly similar to it with respect to kinds of activity analogous to kinds of activity conducted by the rightholder and shall remunerate the rightholder for damages caused.

Article 1475. Validity of the Exclusive Right to a Trade Name within the Territory of the Russian Federation

1. The exclusive right to a trade name included in the Single State Register of Legal Entities shall be valid within the territory of the Russian Federation.

2. The exclusive right to a trade name shall arise from the date of official registration of the legal entity and shall be terminated at the time of the exclusion of the trade name from the Single State Register of Legal Entities in connection with the liquidation of the legal entity or change of its trade name.

Article 1476. Relationship of Rights to a Trade Name with Rights to a Commercial Name and to a Trademark and Service Mark

1. A trade name or separate elements thereof may be used by the rightholder in the composition of a commercial name belonging to him.

A trade name included in a commercial name shall be protected independently of the protection of the commercial name.

2. A trade name or individual elements thereof may be used by the rightholder in a trademark or service mark belonging to him.

A trade name included in a trademark or service mark shall be protected independently of the protection of the trademark or service mark.

§ 2. Right to a Trademark and the Right to a Service Mark

1. General Provisions

Article 1477. Trademark and Service Mark

1. An exclusive right certified by a trademark certificate (Article 1481) shall be recognized to a trademark, i.e., to a sign capable of individualizing of goods of legal entities or individual entrepreneurs.

2. The provisions of the present Code related to trademarks shall be applied correspondingly to service marks, i.e., to signs capable of individualizing work performed or services rendered by legal entities or individual entrepreneurs.

Article 1478. Holder of the Exclusive Right to a Trademark

The holder of the exclusive right to a trademark shall be a legal entity or an individual entrepreneur.

Article 1479. Validity of the Exclusive Right to a Trademark within the Territory of the Russian Federation

The exclusive right to a trademark registered by the federal executive authority for intellectual property shall be valid within the territory of the Russian Federation, and also in other cases provided for by an international treaty of the Russian Federation.

Article 1480. Official Registration of a Trademark

Official registration of a trademark shall be effected by the federal executive authority for intellectual property in the State Register of Trademarks and Service Marks of the Russian Federation (State Register of Trademarks) by the procedure provided by Articles 1503 and 1505 of the present Code.

Article 1481. Trademark Certificate

1. A trademark certificate shall be issued for a trademark registered in the State Register of Trademarks.

2. The trademark certificate shall certify the priority of a trademark and the exclusive right to the trademark with respect to the goods indicated in the certificate.

Article 1482. Types of Trademarks

1. Word, figurative, three-dimensional, and other signs or combinations thereof may be registered as trademarks.

2. A trademark may be registered in any color or color combination.

Article 1483. Grounds for Refusal of Official Registration of a Trademark

1. The following signs shall not be registered as trademarks if they are not capable of distinguishing or consisting only of elements that:

1) have fallen into public domain to indicate the goods of a certain kind;

2) are generally accepted symbols and terms;

3) characterize goods, including indication of their type, quality, quantity, properties , purpose, or value and also the time, place, or means of their production or sale;

4) represent the configuration of goods that is determined exclusively or mainly by the properties or purpose of the goods.

The indicated elements may be incorporated in the trademark as non-protected elements if they do not prevail.

The provisions of the present Paragraph shall not be applied with respect to signs that have acquired the distinctiveness as the result of their use.

2. By virtue of an international treaty of the Russian Federation the signs shall not be registered as trademarks if they consist only of elements that are:

1) state armorial bearings, flags, or other state symbols and marks;

2) abbreviations or full names of international and intergovernmental organizations, their armorial bearings, flags, or other symbols and marks;

3) official signs or hallmarks of control and warranty, seals, awards, and other distinguishing signs;

4) signs confusingly similar to the elements indicated in subparagraphs 1-3 of the present Paragraph.

Such elements may be included in a trademark as non-protected elements provided there is consent of an appropriate competent authority.

3. The signs shall not be registered as trademarks that are or contain the elements:

1) that are false or capable of misleading a consumer in respect of goods or their producer;

2) that are contrary to public interests, or to principles of humanity or morality.

4. The signs identical or confusingly similar to the official names and images of particularly valuable objects of the cultural heritage of the peoples of the Russian Federation or objects of world cultural or natural heritage, and also with images of cultural values stored in special, general, and reserve collections shall not be registered as trademarks if registration is sought in the name of persons who are not their owners, without the consent of their owners or of the persons authorized by the owners for the registration of such signs as trademarks.

5. By virtue of an international treaty of the Russian Federation, the signs shall not be registered as trademarks that are or contain elements that are protected in one of the States party to this international treaty as signs identifying wines or spirits as originating from its territory (or produced within the boundaries of a geographical object of this state) and have a particular quality, reputation, or other characteristics that are mainly determined by its origin, if the trademark shall be used for the indication of wines or spirits that not originating from the territory of the geographical object concerned.

6. The signs shall not be registered as trademarks if they are identical, or confusingly similar to:

1) trademarks of other persons applied for registration (Article 1492) with respect to similar goods with an earlier priority, unless the application for official registration has been withdrawn or has been deemed withdrawn;

2) trademarks of other persons protected in the Russian Federation, including by virtue of an international treaty of the Russian Federation with respect to similar goods.

3) trademarks of other persons recognized under the present Code as well-known marks in the Russian Federation with respect to similar goods with an earlier priority.

The sign confusingly similar to any of the trademarks indicated in the present Paragraph shall be registered as a trademark with respect to similar goods only with the consent of the rightholder.

7. The signs identical or confusingly similar to an appellation of origin protected under the present Code shall not be registered as trademarks with respect to any goods except for the case when such a sign is included as an non-protected element in a trademark registered in the name of person having the exclusive right to use such an appellation, if the registration of the trademark is applied with respect to those goods for individualization of which the appellation of origin is registered.

8. The signs identical or confusingly similar to a trade name or commercial name protected in the Russian Federation (or individual elements of such a trade name or commercial name), or to the names of selection attainment registered in the State Register of Protected Selection Attainment, rights to which arose in the Russian Federation earlier than the priority date of the trademark to be registered shall not be registered as trademarks with respect to similar goods.

9. The signs shall not be registered as trademarks if they are identical to:

1) a title of work of science, literature, or art, a character or quotation from such a work, a work of art or a fragment thereof known in the Russian Federation on filing date of the application for official registration of a trademark (Article 1492), without the consent of the rightholder, if the rights to the respective work arose earlier than the priority date of the trademark to be registered;

2) a name (Article 19), a pseudonym (Paragraph 1 of Article 1265) or their derivatives, a portrait or facsimile of a person known in the Russian Federation on the filing date of the application without the consent of this person or his heir;

3) an industrial design, a correspondence sign, the rights to which arose earlier than the priority date of trademark to be registered.

10. On the grounds provided for in the present Article the legal protection also shall not be granted to signs recognized as trademarks by virtue of international treaties of the Russian Federation.

2. The Use of a Trademark and the Disposition of the Exclusive Right to a Trademark

Article 1484. Exclusive Right to a Trademark

1. A person in whose name the trademark is registered (the rightholder) shall enjoy the exclusive right to use a trademark in accordance with Article 1229 of the present Code in any manner not contrary to a law (the exclusive right to a trademark) including by the means indicated in Paragraph 2 of the present Article. The rightholder may dispose of the exclusive right to the trademark.

2. The exclusive right to a trademark may be disposed for the individualization of the goods, work, or services with respect to which the trademark has been registered, in particular by using a trademark:

1) on goods including labels and packaging of goods, that are produced, offered for sale, sold, displayed at exhibitions and fairs, or otherwise introduced into civil circulation within the territory of the Russian Federation, or are kept or transported for this purpose, or imported into the territory of the Russian Federation;

2) while performing work or rendering of services;

3) on documents introducing goods into civil circulation;

4) while offering goods for sale, work for performance, and services for rendering as well as in announcements, on signboard, and in advertising;

5) in the Internet, including in a domain name and for other means of addressing.

3. No one has the right to use, without the permission of the rightholder, signs similar to his trademark with respect to the goods for the individualization of which the trademark has been registered or similar goods if such use would result in a likelihood of confusion.

Article 1485. Symbol of Legal Protection of a Trademark

The rightholder for giving notice of his exclusive right to a trademark has the right to use the symbol of protection, which shall be placed alongside the trademark and consists of the Latin letter "R" or the Latin letter "R" in a circle ® or the verbal indication "trademark" or "registered trademark" and which indicates that the sign used is a trademark protected within the territory of the Russian Federation.

Article 1486. Consequences of Nonuse of a Trademark

1. Legal protection of a trademark may be early terminated with respect to all goods or part of the goods for the individualization of which the trademark has been registered as the result of the nonuse of the trademark continuously within any three years after its official registration. A request for the pre-term termination of the legal protection of a trademark as the result of its nonuse may be filed by any interested person with the Chamber for Patent Disputes upon the expiration of the aforesaid three years provided that the trademark has not been used before such request was filed.

2. For the purposes of the present Article the use of a trademark shall be considered to be used by the rightholder or other person to whom such a right has been granted on the ground of a license contract in accordance with Article 1489 of the present Code, or by another person using the trademark under the supervision of the rightholder provided that the use of the trademark is conducted in accordance with Paragraph 2 of Article 1484 of the present Code, with the exception of cases when the respective actions are not directly connected with the introduction of the goods into civil circulation and also the use of a trademark with the alteration of individual elements not affecting its capability of distinguishing and not limiting the protection granted to the trademark.

3. The burden of proof of the use of the trademark shall be on the rightholder.

In settling the issue of the pre-term termination of legal protection of a trademark as a result of its nonuse, a proof presented by the rightholder of the fact that the trademark has not been used due to circumstances beyond his control may be taken into consideration.

4. Termination of legal protection of a trademark shall mean the termination of the exclusive right to this trademark.

Article 1487. Exhaustion of the Exclusive Right to a Trademark

Use of a trademark by other persons with respect to goods that have been introduced into civil circulation within the territory of the Russian Federation directly by the rightholder or with his consent shall not be considered to be an infringement of the exclusive right to a trademark.

Article 1488. Contract for the Alienation of the Exclusive Right to a Trademark

1. Under a contract for alienation of the exclusive right to a trademark, one party (the rightholder) shall transfer or shall undertake commitment to transfer in full scope the exclusive right belonging to him to the corresponding trademark with respect to all the goods or with respect to part of the goods for the individualization of which it has been registered to the other party – the recipient of the exclusive right.

2. Alienation of the exclusive right to a trademark under contract shall not be allowed if it can mislead the consumer with respect to the goods or their producer.

3. Alienation of the exclusive right to a trademark including as a non-protected element an appellation of origin for which legal protection has been granted within the territory of the Russian Federation (Paragraph 7 of Article 1483) shall be allowed only if the recipient has an exclusive right of use of such an appellation.

Article 1489. License Contract for the Grant of the Right of Use to a Trademark

1. Under a license contract one party, the holder of the exclusive right to a trademark (the licensor) shall grant or shall undertake the commitment to grant to the other party (the licensee) the right to use a trademark within the limits provided for by the contract with an indication or without an indication of the territory on which use shall be allowed with respect to the certain area of business activity.

2. The licensee shall be obliged to ensure the correspondence of the quality of goods produced or sold by him on which he fixes the licensed trademark to the requirements for quality established by the licensor. The licensor has the right to conduct verification on complying with this condition. The licensee and the licensor shall accept joint and several liability on requirements the licensee as a producer of the goods.

3. Grant of right to use a trademark including as a non-protected element an appellation of origin for which legal protection has been provided for within the territory of the Russian Federation (Paragraph 7 of Article 1483) shall be allowed only if the licensee has the exclusive right to use such an appellation.

Article 1490. Form and Official Registration of Contracts for the Disposition of the Exclusive Right to a Trademark

1. A contract for the alienation of the exclusive right to a trademark, a license contract, and also other contracts by means of which disposition of the exclusive right to a trademark is exercised shall be made in a written form and are subject to official registration by the federal executive authority for intellectual property.

2. (Point 2 is deemed to have lost force (by Federal Law of 21 Feb., 2010 # 13-FZ)

Article 1491. The Term of the Exclusive Right to a Trademark

1. The exclusive right to a trademark shall be valid during ten years from the filing date of an application for official registration of a trademark with the federal executive authority for intellectual property.

2. The term of the exclusive right to a trademark shall be extended for ten years at the request of the rightholder filed during the last year of validity of this right.

The term of the exclusive right to a trademark may be extended without unlimited number of times.

At the request of the rightholder he shall be granted six months after expiration of the term the exclusive right for filing of the aforesaid request provided that an appropriate fee is paid.

3. A record on the extension of the term of the exclusive right to a trademark shall be made by the federal executive authority for intellectual property in the State Register of Trademarks and in the trademark certificate.

3. Official Registration of a Trademark

Article 1492. Application for a Trademark

1. An application for official registration of a trademark (a trademark application) shall be filed with the federal executive authority for intellectual property by a legal entity or individual entrepreneur (an applicant).

2. An application for a trademark shall relate to one trademark.

3. An application for a trademark shall contain:

1) a request for official registration of the sign as a trademark with an indication of the applicant, his legal or actual residence;

2) the claimed sign;

3) a list of goods with respect to which official registration of a trademark is sought and which are grouped according to classes of the International Classification of Goods and Services for the Purposes of Registration of Marks;

4) a description of the claimed sign;

4. An application for a trademark shall be signed by the applicant, and in case of filing of the application through a patent attorney or other representative– by applicant or his representative filing the application.

5. An application for a trademark shall be accompanied:

1) a document certifying payment of the prescribed fee for filing an application ;

2) the charter of a collective mark if the application is filed for registration of a collective mark (Paragraph 1 of Article 1511).

6. A trademark application shall be filed in Russian.

The documents accompanying an application shall be filed in Russian or another language. If these documents are filed in another language, the application shall be accompanied by their translation into Russian. The translation into Russian shall be submitted by the applicant within two months from the date of notification of the necessity to meet this requirement sent to him by the federal executive authority for intellectual property.

7. Requirements for the documents contained in the trademark application and accompanying thereof (documents of the application) shall be established by the federal executive authority responsible for normative and legal regulation in the field of intellectual property.

8. The filing date of a trademark application shall be the date of receipt by the federal executive authority for intellectual property of the documents provided for in subparagraphs 1-3 of Paragraph 3 of the present Article and if the aforesaid documents are not filed at the same time, the date of filing of the last document.

Article 1493. Right to Learn the Documents of a Trademark Application

1. After filing a trademark application with the federal executive authority for intellectual property, any person has the right to learn the application documents submitted on its filing date.

2. The procedure for learning the application documents and issuing of copies of such documents shall be determined by the federal executive authority responsible for normative and legal regulation in the field of intellectual property.

Article 1494. Priority of a Trademark

1. The priority of a trademark shall be determined as of the filing date of the trademark application with the federal executive authority for intellectual property.

2. The priority of a trademark application filed by an applicant in accordance with Paragraph 2 of Article 1502 of the present Code (divisional application) on the ground of another application of this applicant for the same sign (initial application) shall be established as of the filing date of the initial application with the federal executive authority for intellectual property, and when there is the right to an earlier priority for the initial application – as of this priority date, provided that the initial application has not been withdrawn and has not been deemed withdrawn on the date of filing of the divisional application, and when the divisional application was filed prior to taking a decision on the initial application.

Article 1495. Convention and Exhibition Priority of a Trademark

1. Priority of a trademark shall be determined as of the date of filing of the first application for the trademark in a member state of the Paris Convention for the Protection of Industrial Property (convention priority), provided that the application for a trademark has been filed with the federal executive authority for intellectual property within six months from the aforesaid date.

2. Priority of a trademark affixed to exhibits of official or officially recognized international exhibitions organized within the territory of one of member states of the Paris Convention for the Protection of Industrial Property shall be determined as of the date on which the display of the exhibit began (exhibit priority) provided that the trademark application is filed with the federal executive authority for intellectual property within six months from the aforesaid date.

3. An applicant wishing to enjoy the right of convention or exhibit priority shall make the statement to the effect at filing a trademark application or within two months from its filing date with the federal executive authority for intellectual property and shall submit the necessary documents in support of lawfulness of such a request, or shall submit these documents with the aforesaid federal authority within three months from the filing date of the application.

4. The priority of a trademark shall be determined as of the date of international registration of the trademark by virtue of international treaties of the Russian Federation.

Article 1496. Consequences of the Coincidence of Trademark Priority Dates

1. If applications for identical trademarks with respect to fully or partially concurrent lists of goods have been filed by different applicants and these applications have the same priority date, the claimed trademark with respect to the goods for which the aforesaid lists concur shall be registered only in the name of one of the applicants, on the ground of the agreement reached between them.

2. If applications for identical trademarks with respects to fully or partially concurrent lists of goods have been filed by the same applicant, and these applications have the same priority date, the trademark with respect to the goods for which the aforesaid lists concur shall be registered only with respect to one of the applications selected by the applicant.

3. If applications for identical trademarks have been filed by different applicants (Paragraph 1 of the present Article), within six months from the date of receipt from the federal executive authority for intellectual property of the respective notification they shall inform this federal authority of the agreement reached by them in respect of the applications for which the official registration of a trademark is claimed. Within the same period of time, an applicant who filed applications for identical trademarks (Paragraph 2 of the present Article) shall inform of his choice.

If within the time limit respected federal executive authority for intellectual property fails to receive the aforesaid information or a request on the extension of the time limit concerned the trademark applications shall be deemed withdrawn on the ground of a decision of such federal authority.

Article 1497. Examination of a Trademark Application and Introduction of Changes into Documents of the Application

1. Examination of a trademark application shall be carried out by the federal executive authority for intellectual property.

Examination of an application shall include formal examination and examination of the sign claimed as a trademark (claimed sign).

2. During the period of examination of a trademark application the applicant has the right to supplement, clarify, or correct the materials of the application, including by submission of supplementary materials before the decision on it is taken.

If the supplementary materials contain a list of goods not indicated in the application on its filing date or the claimed sign of a trademark has been essentially changed, such supplementary materials shall not be accepted for examination. They shall be drawn and filed by the applicant as an independent application.

3. Change in the application for a trademark of information on the applicant, including in the case of transfer or acquisition of the right to registration of a trademark or as a result of change of the designation or name of the applicant and also correction in the documents of the application of obvious and technical errors shall be introduced before the official registration of the trademark (Article 1503).

4. During the examination of the trademark application, the federal executive authority for intellectual property has the right to invite the applicant to submit supplementary materials without which the examination would be impossible.

Supplementary materials shall be submitted by the applicant within two months from the date of receipt by him of the corresponding notification or of copies of materials indicated in the return request of the applicant provided that the copies were requested by the applicant within one month from the date of receipt by him of the notification from the federal executive authority for intellectual property. If the applicant, within the time limit concerned, does not submit the requested supplementary materials or a request for extension of the time limit concerned, the application shall be deemed withdrawn on the ground of a decision of the federal executive authority for intellectual property. At the request of the applicant the time limit set forth for submission of supplementary materials may be extended by the aforesaid federal authority, but not for more than six months.

The provisions of Paragraph 2 of the present Article shall apply to supplementary materials that contain a list of goods not indicated in the application on its filing date or which substantially change the sign claimed as a trademark.

Article 1498. Formal Examination of a Trademark Application

1. Formal examination of a trademark application shall be carried out within one month from the date of its filing with the federal executive authority for intellectual property.

2. During the formal examination of a trademark application the necessary application documents shall be checked for their compliance with the prescribed requirements. Based on the results of the formal examination the application shall be accepted for further examination or a decision on refusal to accept it for further examination shall be taken. The federal executive authority for intellectual property shall notify the applicant of the results of formal examination.

Along with the notification on a favorable result of formal examination the applicant shall be informed of the filing date of an application set under Paragraph 8 of Article 1492 of the present Code.

Article 1499. Examination of a Sign Claimed as a Trademark

1. Examination of a sign claimed as a trademark (examination of the claimed sign) shall be carried out on an application accepted for further examination after formal examination is over.

During the examination a claimed sign shall be checked for its compliance with the requirements of Article 1477 and Paragraphs 1-7 of Article 1483 of the present Code and the priority of the trademark shall be fixed.

2. Based on the results of the examination of the claimed sign the federal executive authority for intellectual property shall adopt a decision either to register the trademark or to reject its official registration

3. Before the adoption of a decision on the results of the examination of the claimed sign, the applicant may be notified in written form on the results of checking the compliance of the claimed sign with the requirements of the second subparagraph of Paragraph 1 of the present Article with an invitation to furnish his opinion with respect to the grounds adduced in the notification. The applicant’s opinion shall be taken into consideration in the adoption of a decision on the results of the examination of the claimed sign provided that they have been submitted within six months from the date of sending the aforesaid notification to the applicant.

4. A decision on the official registration of a trademark may be revised by the federal executive authority for intellectual property prior to the registration of the trademark in connection with:

1) the receipt of an application with an earlier priority in accordance with Articles 1494, 1495, and 1496 of the present Code for identical or confusingly similar sign with respect to similar goods;

2) the official registration, as an appellation of origin, of a sign identical or confusingly similar to the trademark indicated in the decision on registration;

3) the finding of an application containing an identical trademark, or of a protected identical trademark with respect to fully or partially concurrent lists of goods with the same or an earlier priority of a trademark.

4) the change of the applicant that in case of official registration of the sign claimed as a trademark shall mislead a consumer with respect to the goods or their producer.

Article 1500. Appeal Proceeding against Decisions on a Trademark Application

1. Decisions of the federal executive authority for intellectual property on the refusal to examine an application for a trademark, on official registration of a trademark, on refusal of official registration of a trademark, and on recognition of an application for a trademark as withdrawn shall be appealed by the applicant by filing an appeal with the Chamber for Patent Disputes within three months from the date of receipt of the respective decision or of copies of materials opposed to the application requested from the aforesaid federal executive authority, provided that the applicant requested copies of these materials within one month from the date of receipt by him of the respective decision.

2. During the period of hearing an appeal by the Chamber for Patent Disputes, the applicant may introduce into the documents of the application the changes that are allowed, in accordance with Paragraphs 2 and 3 of Article 1497 of the present Code, provided that such changes remove the reasons that were the single ground for refusal of official registration of the trademark and the introduction of these changes makes it possible to take a decision to register the trademark.

Article 1501. Restoration of Missed Time Limits Related to the Examination of a Trademark Application

The time limits provided for by Paragraph 4 of Article 1497 and by Paragraph 1 of Article 1500 of the present Code, and missed by the applicant, shall be restored by the federal executive authority for intellectual property at the request of the applicant filed within six months from the date of their expiration provided that there is a confirmation in support of the reasons for the failure to comply with the time limits concerned and a respective fee is paid. A request for the restoration of a time limit concerned shall be filed by the applicant with the aforesaid federal authority along with the supplementary materials requested in accordance with Paragraph 4 of Article 1497 of the present Code or with a request on extension of the time limit for their submission or along with an appeal filed to the Chamber for Patent Disputes in accordance with Article 1500 of the present Code.

Article 1502. Withdrawal of a Trademark Application and Division of Application

1. A trademark application may be withdrawn by the applicant at any stage of examination, but not later than on the date of official registration of the trademark.

2. During the period of examination of the trademark application, the applicant has the right until the adoption of decision to file a divisional application for the same sign with the federal executive authority for intellectual property. Such an application shall contain a list of goods from those indicated in the initial application on the date of its filing with the said federal authority and not similar with the other goods from the list contained in the initial application, in regard to which the initial application shall remain in force.

Article 1503. Procedure for Official Registration of a Trademark

1. Based on the decision to effect official registration of a trademark (Paragraph 2 of Article 1499), the federal executive authority for intellectual property shall within one month from the date of receipt of a document certifying the payment of the fee for official registration of the trademark and of issuance of the certificate for it, effect official registration of the trademark in the State Register of Trademarks.

The trademark, information on the rightholder, the priority date of the trademark, the list of goods for individualization of which the trademark has been registered, the date of its official registration, and other information relating to the registration of the trademark, and also later changes of this information shall be entered into the State Register of Trademarks.

2. In case of failure to submit, in accordance with established procedure, a document certifying the payment of the fee indicated in Paragraph 1 of the present Article, the trademark shall not been registered, and the application concerned shall be deemed withdrawn based on decision of the federal executive authority for intellectual property.

Article 1504. Issuance of a Trademark Certificate

1. A trademark certificate shall be issued by the federal executive authority for intellectual property within one month from the date of official registration of the trademark in the State Register of Trademarks.

2. The form of a trademark certificate and data contained in it shall be established by the federal executive authority responsible for normative and legal regulation in the field of intellectual property.

Article 1505. Entry of Changes in the State Register of Trademarks and in the Trademark Certificate

1. A rightholder shall inform the federal executive authority for intellectual property of any changes relating to official registration of a trademark including in designation or name of the rightholder, limitation in the list of goods for the individualization of which the trademark has been registered, change of individual elements of the trademark not changing its essence.

2. When the grant of legal protection for a trademark (Article 1512) is appealed on request of the rightholder a separate registration of this trademark for one of the goods or some of the goods from those indicated in the initial registration not similar with the goods the list of which remains in the original registration may be divided from the official registration of a trademark in effect with respect to several goods. Such a request shall be filed by the rightholder before the decision on the results of dispute settlement on registration of the trademark is taken.

3. Changes relating to official registration of a trademark shall be entered into the State Register of Trademarks and into the trademark certificate provided an appropriate fee has been paid.

4. The federal executive authority for intellectual property has the right, on its own initiative, introduce changes into the State Register of Trademarks and into the trademark certificate to correct evident and technical errors, after sending to the rightholder the notification concerned.

Article 1506. Publication of Information on the Official Registration of a Trademark

Information relating to official registration of a trademark and entered in the State Register of Trademarks in accordance with Article 1503 of the present Code shall be published by the federal executive authority for intellectual property in the official gazette promptly after the registration of the trademark in the State Register of Trademarks or after corresponding changes have been entered in the State Register of Trademarks.

Article 1507. Registration of a Trademark in Foreign States and International Registration of a Trademark

1. Russian legal entities and citizens of the Russian Federation have the right to register a trademark in the foreign states or to effect its international registration.

2. An application for the international registration of a trademark shall be filed through the federal executive authority for intellectual property.

4. Aspects of Legal Protection of a Well-Known Mark

Article 1508. Well-Known Mark

1. On the request of a person considering that the trademark used by him or the sign used as a trademark is well-known in the Russian Federation, a trademark protected within the territory of the Russian Federation on the ground of its official registration or by virtue of an international treaty of the Russian Federation or a sign used as a trademark but not enjoying legal protection within the territory of the Russian Federation by a decision of the federal executive authority for intellectual property may be recognized as a well-known mark in the Russian Federation if this trademark or this sign as the result of intensive use on the date, indicated in the application, have become widely known in the Russian Federation among the corresponding consumers with respect to goods of this applicant.

A trademark and a sign used as a trademark shall not be considered as well-known marks if they have become widely known after the priority date of an identical or confusingly similar trademark of another person, intended to be used with respect to similar goods.

2. A well-known mark shall be granted the legal protection provided for by the present Code for a trademark.

The grant of legal protection to a well-known mark shall mean the recognition of the exclusive right to the well-known mark.

The legal protection of a well-known mark shall be valid within indefinite period of time.

3. The legal protection of a well-known mark shall also extend to goods non-similar to those with respect to which it was considered as well-known provided that the use by another person of the trademark with respect to the aforesaid goods will be associated by consumers with the rightholder of the exclusive right to the well-known mark and infringe the lawful interests of such a holder.

Article 1509. Granting Legal Protection to a Well-Known Mark

1. Legal protection shall be granted to a well-known mark based on the decision of the federal executive authority for intellectual property adopted in accordance with Paragraph 1 of Article 1508 of the present Code.

2. A trademark recognized as well-known mark shall be entered by the federal executive authority for intellectual property in the List of Well-Known Marks in the Russian Federation (List of Well-Known Marks).

3. A certificate for a well-known mark shall be issued by the federal executive authority for intellectual property within one month from the date of entering the trademark in the List of Well-Known Marks.

The form of the certificate for well-known mark and data to be included into this certificate shall be established by the federal executive authority responsible for normative and legal regulation in the field of intellectual property.

4. The data related to a well-known mark shall be published by the federal executive authority for intellectual property in the official gazette promptly after they are entered in the List of Well-Known marks.

5. Aspects of Legal Protection of a Collective Mark

Article 1510. Right to a Collective Mark

1. An association of persons the foundation and activity of which do not contravene the legislation of the state where it has been founded has the right to register a collective mark in the Russian Federation.

A collective mark is a trademark intended for marking the goods produced or sold by persons which are the members of the said association and possessing common characteristics of their quality or other general properties.

A collective mark shall be used by each of the persons which is a member of the association.

2. The right to a collective mark shall not be alienated and shall not be the subject of a license contract.

3. A person which is a member of the association that registered the collective mark has the right to use his own trademark along with the collective mark.

Article 1511. Official Registration of a Collective Mark

1. An application for registration of a collective mark (application for a collective trademark) filed with the federal executive authority for intellectual property shall be accompanied by a charter of a collective trademark which shall contain:

1) the name of the association authorized to register the collective mark on its name (the rightholder);

2) a list of persons having the right to use this collective mark;

3) the purpose of registration of the collective mark;

4) a list of and common characteristics of quality or other general properties of goods that are to be designated by the collective mark;

5) the terms of use of the collective mark;

6) provisions on the procedure for supervision of the use of the collective mark;

7) provisions on responsibility for violation of the charter of the collective mark.

2. Data on the persons having the right to use the collective mark shall be entered in the State Register of Trademarks and in the collective mark certificate in addition to the information provided for by Articles 1503 and 1504 of the present Code. This data as well as an extract from the charter of the collective mark on the common characteristics of quality and of other general properties of goods with respect to which this mark has been registered shall be published by the federal executive authority for intellectual property in the official gazette.

The rightholder shall inform the federal executive authority for intellectual property of changes in the charter of the collective mark.

3. In case where the collective mark is used on goods not possessing the common characteristics of their quality or other general properties, legal protection of the collective mark shall be early terminated fully or in part based on the decision of a court taken at the request of any interested person.

4. The collective mark and an application for a collective mark may be transformed respectively into a trademark and a trademark application and vice versa. The procedure for such a transformation shall be established by the federal executive authority responsible for normative and legal regulation in the field of intellectual property.

6. Termination of the Exclusive Right to a Trademark

Article 1512. Grounds for Appeal and Recognizing as Invalid the Grant of Legal Protection to a Trademark

1. Appeal against the grant of legal protection to a trademark shall be considered as an appeal against a decision on the official registration of a trademark (Paragraph 2 of Article 1499) and of the recognition of the exclusive right to a trademark based upon it (Articles 1477 and 1481).

Recognition of the invalidity of the grant of legal protection to a trademark shall entail the revocation of the decision of the federal executive authority for intellectual property on registration of the trademark.

2. The grant of legal protection to a trademark may be appealed and recognized as invalid:

1) fully or in part during the whole period of validity of the exclusive right to a trademark provided that legal protection has been granted to it in contravention of the requirements of Paragraphs 1–5, 8 and 9 of Article 1483 of the present Code;

2) fully or in part within a period of five years from the date of publication of information about the official registration of the trademark in the official gazette (Article 1506) provided that the legal protection has been granted to it in contravention of the requirements of Paragraphs 6 and 7 of Article 1483 of the present Code;

3) fully during the whole period of validity of the exclusive right to a trademark provided that the legal protection has been granted to it in contravention of the requirements of Article 1478 of the present Code;

4) fully during the whole period of validity of legal protection provided that the legal protection has been granted to a trademark with later priority with respect to a recognized well-known registered mark of another person, the legal protection of which is exercised in accordance with Paragraph 3 of Article 1508 of the present Code;

5) fully during the whole period of validity of the exclusive right to the trademark provided that the legal protection has been granted to it in the name of an agent or representative of a person who is deemed to be the holder of this exclusive right in one of the member states of the Paris Convention for the Protection of Industrial Property in contravention of the requirements of the said Convention;

6) fully or in part during the whole period of validity of legal protection provided that actions of the rightholder connected with the official registration of the trademark are recognized by the established procedure as abuse of rights or an act of unfair competition.

3. The grant of legal protection to a well-known trademark by its registration in the Russian Federation may be appealed and recognized as invalid fully or in part during the whole period of validity of the exclusive right to this trademark provided that the legal protection has been granted to it in contravention of the requirements of Paragraph 1 of Article 1508 of the present Code.

Article 1513. Procedure of Appealing and Recognizing as Invalid the Grant of Legal Protection to a Trademark

1. The grant of legal protection to a trademark may be appealed on the grounds and within the time limits provided by Article 1512 of the present Code by the filing of an appeal against such a grant with the Chamber for Patent Disputes or the federal executive authority for intellectual property.

2. Appeals against the grant of legal protection to a trademark on the grounds provided for by subparagraphs 1, 2, 3, and 4 of Paragraph 2 and by Paragraph 3 of Article 1512 of the present Code may be filed with the Chamber for Patent Disputes by any interested person.

3. An appeal against the grant of legal protection to a trademark on the ground provided for by subparagraph 5 of Paragraph 2 of Article 1512 of the present Code may be filed with the Chamber for Patent Disputes by an interested holder of the exclusive right to the trademark in one of the member states of the Paris Convention for the Protection of Industrial Property.

An appeal against the grant of legal protection to a trademark on the ground provided for by subparagraph 6 of Paragraph 2 of Article 1512 of the present Code shall be filed by an interested person with the federal executive authority for intellectual property.

4. Decisions of the federal executive authority for intellectual property on the recognition of the grant of legal protection to a trademark as invalid or on refusal of such recognition shall enter into force in accordance with the provisions of Article 1248 of the present Code and may be appealed in a court.

5. In case of recognition of the grant of legal protection to a trademark as invalid fully, the trademark certificate and the entry in the State Register of Trademarks shall be cancelled.

In case of recognition of the grant of legal protection to a trademark as partially invalid, a new trademark certificate shall be issued and the corresponding changes shall be introduced into the State Register of Trademarks.

6. License contracts concluded before taking a decision on the recognition of the grant of legal protection to a trademark invalid shall be maintained to such an extent to which they have been implemented by the time when the decision concerned was taken.

Article 1514. Termination of Legal Protection of a Trademark

1. Legal protection of a trademark shall be terminated:

1) in connection with the expiration of the period of validity of the exclusive right to a trademark;

2) on the grounds of a court ruling rendered in accordance with Paragraph 3 of Article 1511 of the present Code on the pre-term termination of the legal protection of a collective trademark in connection with the use of this mark on goods that do not possess common characteristics of their quality or other general properties;

3) on the grounds of a decision taken in accordance with Article 1486 of the present Code on the pre-term termination of legal protection of a trademark in connection with its nonuse;

4) on the grounds of a decision of the federal executive authority for intellectual property on the pre-term termination of the legal protection of a trademark in case of liquidation of the legal entity - the rightholder or the termination of the business activity of the natural person - the rightholder;

5) when the rightholder abandons the right to the trademark;

6) on the grounds of a decision of the federal executive authority for intellectual property taken at the request of an interested person on the pre-term termination of the legal protection of the trademark in case of its transformation into a sign that has fallen into public domain as the sign used to designate goods of a certain kind.

2. Legal protection of a well-known mark shall be terminated on the grounds provided for by subparagraphs 3-6 of Paragraph 1 of the present Article and also by a decision of the federal executive authority for intellectual property in case the well-known mark looses the features provided for by the first subparagraph of Paragraph 1 of Article 1508 of the present Code.

3. In case of transfer of the exclusive right to a trademark without the conclusion of a contract with the rightholder (Article 1241) the legal protection of the trademark may be terminated on court ruling on suit by an interested person provided that there is a proof that such a transfer misleads consumers with respect to the goods or their producer.

4. Termination of the legal protection of a trademark shall mean the termination of the exclusive right to this trademark.

7. Enforcement of the Right to a Trademark

Article 1515. Liability for Illegal Use of a Trademark

1. Goods, labels, and packaging of goods on which a trademark or a confusingly similar sign are fixed illegally shall be deemed counterfeits.

2. The rightholder has the right to demand of removing from civil circulation and destroying at the expense of an infringer of counterfeit goods, labels, and packaging of the goods on which a trademark or confusingly similar sign is illegally used. In those cases when the introduction of such goods into circulation is necessary in public interests, the rightholder has the right to demand removal of the illegally used trademark or confusingly similar sign from the counterfeit goods, labels, and packaging of the goods at the expense of the infringer illegally using the trademark or confusingly similar sign.

3. A person who has infringed the exclusive right to a trademark in the performance of work or rendering of services shall be obliged to remove the trademark or confusingly similar sign from the materials that accompanied the performance of such work or rendering of services, including documentation, advertising, and signboards.

4. The rightholder has the right to demand at his option from the infringer instead of remuneration for damages payment of remuneration:

1) in the amount of from ten thousand rubles to five million rubles determined at the discretion of the court based on the nature of the infringement;

2) in double amount of the value of the goods on which the trademark is illegally fixed or in double amount of the value of the rights of the use of the trademark determined starting from the price that in comparable circumstances is usually taken for lawful use of the trademark.

5. A person who has made a precautionary marking with respect to a trademark not registered in the Russian Federation shall bear liability in accordance with the procedure provided by the legislation of the Russian Federation.

§ 3. Right to an Appellation of Origin

1. General Provisions

Article 1516. Appellation of Origin

1. An appellation of origin to which legal protection is granted is a sign that represents or contains a contemporary or historical, official or unofficial, full or abbreviated name of the country, city or rural settlement, locality, or other geographical object and also a derivative of such appellation which became known as the result of its use to designate the special properties of goods which are defined exclusively or mainly by the natural conditions and/or human factors specific for the geographical object concerned. The producers of such goods shall enjoy the exclusive right (Articles 1229 and 1519) to use this appellation.

The provisions of this Paragraph shall accordingly be applied to a sign which allows for the identification of the goods as originating from the territory of a certain geographic object, and, though it does not contain the name of that object, became known as the result the use of such sign in respect of the goods, the special properties of which correspond to the requirements set forth in subparagraph 1 of the present Paragraph.

2. A designation, which represents or contains the name of a geographical object but has fallen into public domain in the Russian Federation as a designation of goods of a certain kind not connected with the place of their production shall not be recognized as an appellation of origin.

Article 1517. Validity of the Exclusive Right to Use an Appellation of Origin within the territory of the Russian Federation

1. An exclusive right to use an appellation of origin shall be valid within the territory of the Russian Federation provided that it is registered by the federal executive authority for intellectual property and also in other cases provided for by an international treaty of the Russian Federation.

2. The name of a geographical object that is located in a foreign state shall be registered as an appellation of origin provided that the name of this place is protected as such an appellation in the country of origin of the goods. The holder of the exclusive right to use the aforesaid appellation of origin shall be only the person whose right to such an appellation is protected in the country of origin of the goods.

Article 1518. Official Registration of an Appellation of Origin

1. An appellation of origin shall be recognized and protected by virtue of official registration of such an appellation.

An appellation of origin may be registered by one or more citizens or legal entities.

2. Persons who have registered an appellation of origin shall be granted the exclusive right to use this appellation verified by a certificate provided that the goods produced by these persons meet the requirements established by Paragraph 1 of Article 1516 of the present Code.

The exclusive right to use the same appellation of origin shall be granted to any person who, within the boundaries of the same geographical object, produces goods having the same special properties.

2. Use of an Appellation of Origin

Article 1519. Exclusive Right to an Appellation of Origin

1. The rightholder shall have the exclusive right to use an appellation of origin in accordance with Article 1229 of the present Code in any manner not contrary to a law (the exclusive right to an appellation of origin), including by the means indicated in Paragraph 2 of the present Article.

2. An appellation of origin shall be considered as used if it is fixed in particular:

1) on goods, on labels, and on packaging of goods, that are produced, offered for sale, sold, shown at exhibitions and fairs or in another manner introduced into civil circulation within the territory of the Russian Federation, or are stored or transported with this purpose, or are imported into the territory of the Russian Federation;

2) on letterheads, invoices, and in other documentation and in printed publications connected with introducing the goods into civil circulation;

3) in offerings for sale of goods, and also in announcements, on signboards, and in advertising;

4) on the Internet including in a domain name and by other means of addressing;

3. Persons who do not have the respective certificate shall not use the registered appellation of origin even if in this case the real place of origin is indicated or appellation is used in translation or in connection with such words as "kind," "type," "imitation," and the like, and also the use of a similar appellation for any goods that is capable of misleading consumers with respect to the place of origin and the special properties of goods (illegal use of an appellation of origin).

Goods, labels, and packaging of goods on which appellations of origin or confusingly similar appellations are used illegally shall be deemed counterfeits.

4. Disposition of the exclusive right to use an appellation of origin, including by way of its alienation or granting to another person the right of use of this appellation shall not be allowed.

Article 1520. Symbol of Protection of an Appellation of Origin

The holder of a certificate on the exclusive right to an appellation of origin for notification of his exclusive right may fix along with the appellation of origin (AO) the symbol of protection in the form of the a word sign "registered appellation of origin or "registered AO", indicating that the used name is an appellation of origin registered in the Russian Federation.

Article 1521. Validity of Legal Protection of an Appellation of Origin

1. An appellation of origin shall be protected within the whole time of the possibility of producing the goods, the specific properties of which are exclusively or mainly determined by the natural conditions and (or) human factors specific for the geographical object concerned (Article 1516).

2. The term of a certificate of the exclusive right to an appellation of origin and the procedure for renewal shall be determined by Article 1531 of the present Code.

3. Official Registration of an Appellation of Origin and Grant of the Exclusive Right to an Appellation of Origin

Article 1522. Application for an Appellation of Origin

1. An application for the official registration of an appellation of origin and grant of the exclusive right to this appellation and also an application for the grant of the exclusive right to an earlier registered appellation of origin (an application for an appellation of origin) shall be filed with the federal executive authority for intellectual property.

2. An application for an appellation of origin shall relate to one appellation of origin.

3. An application for an appellation of origin shall contain:

1) a request for the official registration of an appellation of origin and grant of the exclusive right to such an appellation or only for the grant of the exclusive right to an earlier registered appellation of origin, indicating the applicant and also his legal or actual residence;

2) the claimed sign;

3) the kind of goods with respect to which official registration of an appellation of origin and grant of the exclusive to such a name or only the grant of the exclusive right to the registered appellation of origin is claimed ;

4) indication of the place of origin (or production) of the goods (the borders of the geographical object), the natural conditions and/or human factors of which exclusively or mainly determined or may determine the specific properties of goods;

5) a description of the specific properties of the goods.

4. An application for an appellation of origin shall be signed by an applicant or in case of filing of the application through a patent attorney or the other representative – by the applicant or by his representative filing the application.

5. If a geographical object, the name of which is claimed as an appellation of origin, is located within the territory of the Russian Federation, an application shall be accompanied by the opinion of an authority empowered by the Government of the Russian Federation to the effect that the applicant, within the borders of the geographical object concerned, produces goods, the specific properties of which are exclusively or mainly determined by the natural conditions and/or human factors specific for the geographical object concerned.

An application for the grant of the exclusive right to an earlier registered appellation of origin located within the territory of the Russian Federation shall be accompanied by the opinion of a competent authority, determined by the procedure established by the Government of the Russian Federation to the effect that the applicant produces, within the territory of the aforesaid geographical object, goods having the specific properties indicated in the appellation of origin in the State Register of Appellations of Origin of the Russian Federation (State Register of Appellations) (Article 1529).

If a geographical object the name of which is claimed as an appellation of origin is located outside the territory of the Russian Federation an application shall be accompanied by a document which certifies the right of an applicant to the claimed appellation of origin in the country of origin.

An application shall also be accompanied by a document certifying the payment of the prescribed fee for application filing.

6. An application for an appellation of origin shall be filed in the Russian.

Documents accompanying the application shall be filed in Russian or another language. If these documents are filed in another language, the application shall be accompanied by their translation into Russian. A translation into Russian shall be submitted by the applicant within two months from the date of notifying him by the federal executive authority for intellectual property of the necessity to fulfill the said requirement.

7. The requirements to the documents contained in the application for an appellation of origin or accompanying it (application documents) shall be established by the federal executive authority responsible for normative and legal regulation in the field of intellectual property.

8. The filing date of an application for an appellation of origin shall be the date of receipt by the federal executive authority for intellectual property of the documents provided by Paragraph 3 of the present Article, and if the aforesaid documents are not filed at the same time – the filing date of the last document.

Article 1523. Examination of the Application for an Appellation of Origin and Introduction of Changes into the Documents of an Application

1. Examination of an application for an appellation of origin shall be carried out by the federal executive authority for intellectual property.

Examination of the application shall include a formal examination and examination of the name claimed as an appellation of origin (the claimed name).

2. During the examination of an application for an appellation of origin, the applicant has the right before the decision on it is taken to supplement, clarify, or correct the materials of the application.

If the supplementary materials change an application to its essence, these materials shall not be accepted for examination and may be filed by the applicant as an independent application.

3. During the examination of the application for an appellation of origin, the federal executive authority for intellectual property has the right to invite the applicant to submit supplementary materials without which the examination shall not be carried out.

Supplementary materials shall be submitted by the applicant within two months from the date of receipt by him of the notification concerned. On request of the applicant, this time limit may be extended provided that the request has been received prior to the expiration of the time limit concerned. If the applicant fails to comply with the time limit concerned or to reply to the notification to submit supplementary materials, the application shall be deemed withdrawn based on a decision of the federal executive authority for intellectual property.

Article 1524. Formal Examination of the Application for an Appellation of the Place of Origin

1. Formal examination of the application for an appellation of origin shall be carried out within two months from the date of its filing with the federal executive authority for intellectual property.

2. During the formal examination of the application for an appellation of origin, the availability of the necessary documents of the application and also their compliance with the statutory requirements shall be checked. On the results of the formal examination, the application shall be accepted for further examination or a decision on refusal to accept the application for further examination shall be taken. The applicant shall be informed of the results of the formal examination.

Along with the notification on a positive result of formal examination of the application the applicant shall be informed of the filing date of the application established in accordance with Paragraph 8 of Article 1520 of the present Code.

Article 1525. Examination of the Sign Claimed as an Appellation of Origin

1. Examination of the sign claimed as an appellation of origin (examination of a claimed sign) for compliance of such a sign with the requirements of Article 1516 of the present Code shall be carried out with respect to an application accepted for further examination as the result of formal examination.

During the examination of a claimed sign, the grounds for the indication of a place of origin (or production) of goods within the territory of the Russian Federation shall also be checked.

On the application accepted for examination for the grant of the exclusive right to an earlier registered appellation of origin, shall be carried out the examination of the claimed sign for its compliance with the requirements of the second subparagraph of Paragraph 5 of Article 1522 of the present Code.

2. Before taking a decision on the results of the examination of the claimed sign in the case of an assumed refusal of official registration of an appellation of origin and/or of a grant of the exclusive right to such an appellation the applicant shall be sent a notification in written form of the results of checking the compliance of the claimed sign with the requirements of Article 1516 of the present Code, with a proposal to adduce his arguments for the reasons given in the notification. The arguments of the applicant shall be taken into consideration in taking a decision on the results of examination of the claimed sign provided that they are submitted within six months from the date of forwarding the notification concerned to the applicant.

Article 1526. Decision Taken on the Results of the Examination of the Claimed Sign

Based on the results of the examination of a claimed sign, the federal executive authority for intellectual property shall adopt a decision either on the official registration of the appellation of origin and on grant of the exclusive right to this appellation or refusal of official registration of the appellation of origin and/or grant of the exclusive right of use of such an appellation.

If the application for an appellation of origin contained a request to grant the exclusive right to an earlier registered appellation, the federal executive authority shall adopt a decision either to grant or refuse of granting such an exclusive right.

Article 1527. Withdrawal of the Application for an Appellation of Origin

An application for an appellation of origin may be withdrawn by the applicant at any stage of examination before receiving information on the official registration of the corresponding appellation of origin and/or on grant of the exclusive right to such an appellation entry in the State Register of Appellations.

Article 1528. Appeal against Decisions on the Application for an Appellation of Origin. Restoration of Missed Time Limit

1. Decisions of the federal executive authority for intellectual property on the refusal to accept the application for an appellation of origin for examination, on the recognition of such an application as withdrawn, and also the decisions of this authority adopted on the results of the examination of a claimed sign (Article 1526) may be appealed by the applicant by filing an appeal with the Chamber for Patent Disputes within three months from the date of receipt of the respective decision.

2. Time limits provided by Paragraph 3 of Article 1523 of the present Code and by Paragraph 1 of the present Article and missed by the applicant shall be restored by the federal executive authority for intellectual property on request of the applicant filed within two months from the date of their expiration, provided there is a reasonable excuse for the failure to comply with the time limits concerned and a respective fee is paid.

A request on the restoration of a missed time limit shall be submitted by the applicant to the federal executive authority for intellectual property along with the supplementary materials requested in accordance with Paragraph 3 of Article 1523 of the present Code or with a request to extend the time limit for their submission or at the same time with filing an appeal with the federal executive authority for intellectual property on the grounds of Paragraph 1 of the present Article.

Article 1529. Procedure for Official Registration of an Appellation of Origin

1. Following a decision adopted on the results of the examination of a claimed sign (Article 1526), the federal executive authority for intellectual property shall effect the official registration of an appellation of origin in the State Register of Appellations.

2. In the State Register of Appellations there shall be entered the appellation of origin, information on the holder of the certificate of the exclusive right to the appellation of origin, an indication and description of the specific properties of goods for the individualization of which the appellation of origin has been registered, and other information relating to registration and the grant of the exclusive right to the appellation of origin, the renewal of the term of the certificate and also subsequent changes in this information.

Article 1530. Issuance of a Certificate of the Exclusive Right to an Appellation of Origin

1. The federal executive authority for intellectual property shall issue a certificate attesting the exclusive right to an appellation of origin within one month from the date of receipt of a document certifying payment of an appropriate fee for the issuance of a certificate of the exclusive right to an appellation of origin.

In case of failure to submit by the established procedure a document attesting to the payment of an appropriate fee, the certificate shall not be issued.

2. The form of the certificate of the exclusive right to an appellation of origin and the list of data contained in such a certificate shall be established by the federal executive authority responsible for normative and legal regulation in the field of intellectual property.

Article 1531. Term of a Certificate of the Exclusive Right to an Appellation of Origin

1. A certificate of the exclusive right to an appellation of origin shall be valid within ten years from the filing date of an application for an appellation of origin with the federal executive authority for intellectual property.

2. The term of the certificate of the exclusive right to an appellation of origin shall be renewed at the request of the holder of the certificate and provided that a decision of a competent authority determined by the procedure established by the Government of the Russian Federation is submitted by him to certify that the holder of the certificate produces, within the borders of the corresponding geographical object, the goods with specific properties indicated in the State Register of Appellations.

With respect to a name that is the appellation of a geographical object located out of the territory of the Russian Federation, instead of the decision indicated in the first subparagraph of the present Paragraph the holder of the certificate shall submit a document attesting his right to the appellation of origin in the country of origin as of the filing date of an application for the renewal of the term of the certificate.

A request for the renewal of the term of a certificate shall be filed during the last year of its validity.

On request of the holder of a certificate, he shall be granted six months after the expiration of the term of the certificate to file a request to renew this term provided that an additional fee is paid.

The term of a certificate shall be renewed each time for ten years.

3. A record on renewal of the term of a certificate of the exclusive right to an appellation of origin shall be entered by the federal executive authority for intellectual property in the State Register of Appellations and the aforesaid certificate.

Article 1532. Introduction of Changes in the State Register of Appellations and the Certificate of the Exclusive Right to an Appellation of Origin

1. The holder of a certificate of the exclusive right to an appellation of origin shall inform the federal executive authority for intellectual property of a change in his designation or name and also any other changes relating to the official registration of the appellation of origin and to the grant of the exclusive right to this appellation (Paragraph 2 of Article 1529).

A record on change in the State Register of Appellations and the certificate shall be made subject to payment of an appropriate fee.

2. The federal executive authority for intellectual property has the right, on its own initiative, to enter changes in the State Register of Appellations and the certificate of the exclusive right to an appellation of origin to correct obvious and technical errors, having previously informed of it the holder of the certificate.

Article 1533. Publication of Information on Official Registration of an Appellation of Origin

Information relating to the official registration of an appellation of origin and the grant of the exclusive right to such an appellation and entered in the State Register of Appellations in accordance with Articles 1529 and 1532 of the present Code, with the exception of information containing a description of the specific properties of the goods shall be published by the federal executive authority for intellectual property in the official gazette promptly after their entry in the State Register of Appellations.

Article 1534. Registration of an Appellation of Origin in Foreign States

1. Russian legal entities and citizens of the Russian Federation shall have the right to register an appellation of origin in foreign states.

2. An application for registration of an appellation of origin in a foreign state shall be filed after the official registration of an appellation of origin and the grant of the exclusive right to such an appellation in the Russian Federation.

4. Termination of the Legal Protection of an Appellation of Origin and of the Exclusive Right to an Appellation of Origin

Article 1535. Grounds to Appeal and Recognize as Invalid the Grant of Legal Protection to an Appellation of Origin and the Exclusive Right to such Appellation

1. Appeal of the grant of legal protection to an appellation of origin shall mean an appeal of the decision of the federal executive authority for intellectual property on the official registration of an appellation of origin and grant of the exclusive right to this appellation and also the issuance of a certificate on the exclusive right to an appellation of origin.

Appeal of the grant of the exclusive right to an earlier registered appellation of origin shall mean an appeal of the decision on the grant of the exclusive right to an earlier registered appellation of origin and the issuance of a certificate on the exclusive right to an appellation of origin

Recognition of the grant of legal protection to an appellation of origin as invalid shall lead to the rescission of the decision on the official registration of an appellation of origin and on the grant of the exclusive right to an appellation concerned, the cancellation of the record in the State Register of Appellations and of the certificate of the exclusive right to this appellation.

Recognition of the invalidity of granting the exclusive right to an earlier registered appellation of origin shall entail the rescission of the decision on granting the exclusive right to an earlier registered appellation of origin, the cancellation of the record in the State Register of Appellations and also of the certificate of the exclusive right to this appellation.

2. The grant of legal protection to an appellation of origin shall be appealed and recognized as invalid within the whole term of protection provided that the legal protection has been granted in violation of the requirements established by the present Code. The grant of the exclusive right to an earlier registered appellation of origin shall be appealed and recognized as invalid within the whole term of the certificate of the exclusive right to an appellation of origin (Article 1531).

If the use of an appellation of origin is capable to mislead a consumer with respect to the goods or their producer in connection with the a trademark having an earlier priority, the grant of legal protection to the aforesaid appellation shall be appealed within five years from the date of publication of information on the official registration of the appellation of origin in the official gazette.

3. Any interested person, on the grounds provided in Paragraph 2 of the present Article, may file an appeal with the federal executive authority for intellectual property.

Article 1536. Termination of Legal Protection for an Appellation of Origin and Validity of a Certificate of the Exclusive Right to such Appellation

1. Legal protection of an appellation of origin shall be terminated if:

1) specific conditions characterizing the geographical object concerned disappear and the goods having specific properties indicated in the State Register of Appellations with respect to the said appellation of origin can not be produced;

2) a foreign legal entity, foreign citizen, or person without citizenship looses the right to the appellation of origin concerned in the country of origin.

2. The validity of the certificate of the exclusive right to an appellation of origin shall be terminated if:

1) the goods produced by the holder of the certificate have lost the specific properties indicated in the State Register of Appellations with respect to the appellation of origin concerned;

2) the legal protection of an appellation of origin has been terminated on the grounds indicated in Paragraph 1 of the present Article;

3) the legal entity has been liquidated or business activity of the individual entrepreneur has been terminated - the holders of the certificate;

4) the term the certificate has been expired;

5) the holder of the certificate files the respective request with the federal executive authority for intellectual property.

3. Any person, on the grounds provided by Paragraph 1 and by subparagraphs 1 and 2 of Paragraph 2 of the present Article may file with the federal executive authority for intellectual property a request for the termination of the legal protection of an appellation of origin and validity of a certificate of the exclusive right to the appellation concerned, and, on the grounds, provided by subparagraph 3 of Paragraph 2 of the present Article for the termination of the validity of the certificate of the exclusive right to an appellation of origin.

Legal protection of the appellation of origin and validity of the certificate of the exclusive right to the appellation concerned shall be terminated on the ground of a decision of the federal executive authority for intellectual property.

5. Enforcement of an Appellation of Origin

Article 1537. Liability for Illegal Use of an Appellation of Origin

1. A rightholder has the right to demand the removal from circulation and the destruction at the expense of an infringer of counterfeit goods, labels, and packaging on which an illegally used appellation of origin or a sign confusingly similar to it are fixed. In those cases when the introduction of such goods into circulation is determined by public interests, the rightholder has the right to demand the removal at the expense of an infringer from the counterfeit goods, labels, and packages of goods, an illegally used appellation of origin or a sign confusingly similar to it.

2. The rightholder has the right to demand at his option from the infringer instead of remuneration for damages payment of remuneration:

1) in the amount of from ten thousand rubles to five million rubles determined at the discretion of the court proceeding from the nature of the infringement;

2) in double amount of the value of the goods on which the appellation of origin has been illegally fixed.

3. A person who has made a precautionary marking with respect to an appellation of origin not registered in the Russian Federation shall bear the liability by the procedure provided by the legislation of the Russian Federation.

§ 4. Right to a Commercial Name

Article 1538. Commercial Name

1. Legal entities conducting business activity (including noncommercial organizations to which a right to conduct of the activity concerned has been granted in accordance with a law by their charter documents) and also individual entrepreneurs for individualization of trade, industrial and other enterprises belonging to them (Article 132) have the right to use commercial names that do not constitute trade names and are not subject to obligatory inclusion in the charter documents nor the Single State Register of Legal Entities.

2. A commercial name may be used by the rightholder for individualization of one or several enterprises. Two or more commercial names shall not be used at the same time for the individualization of one enterprise.

Article 1539. Exclusive Right to a Commercial Name

1. The rightholder has the exclusive right of use of a commercial name in any manner not contrary to a law (exclusive right to a commercial name) as a means of individualization of an enterprise belonging to him, including by fixing the commercial name on signs, letterheads, bills and other documentation, in announcements and in advertising, and on goods and their packaging, if such a name possesses sufficient distinguishing features and its use by the rightholder for individualization of his enterprise is known within a specific territory.

2. The use of a commercial name capable of misleading with respect to the ownership of an enterprise to a specific person, in particular of a commercial name confusingly similar to a trade name, trademark, or a commercial name protected by the exclusive right and belonging to another person for whom the corresponding exclusive right has been arisen earlier.

3. A person who has violated the provisions of Paragraph 2 of the present Article shall be obliged on demand of the rightholder to terminate the use of the commercial name and to remunerate the rightholder for damages caused.

4. The exclusive right to a commercial name may be transferred to another person (including by contract, by way of universal legal succession and on other grounds established by a law) only as a part of an enterprise for the individualization of which the name concerned is used.

If the commercial name is used by the rightholder for the individualization of several enterprises, the transfer to another person of the exclusive right to a commercial name as a part of one of the enterprises shall deprive the rightholder of the right of use of this commercial name for the individualization of all his remaining enterprises.

5. A rightholder may grant to another person the right of use of his commercial name by the procedure and on the conditions provided by the contract of rent of an enterprise (Article 656) or contract of commercial concession (franchise) (Article 1027).

Article 1540. Validity of the Exclusive Right to a Commercial Name

1. The exclusive right to a commercial name used for individualization of an enterprise located within the territory of the Russian Federation shall be valid within the territory of the Russian Federation.

2. The exclusive right to a commercial name shall be terminated provided that the rightholder does not use it uninterruptedly within one year.

Article 1541. Relationship of the Right to a Commercial Name with Rights to a Trade Name and Trademark 

1. The exclusive right to a commercial name including the trade name of the rightholder or individual elements thereof shall arise and be effective independently of the exclusive right to the trade name.

2. A commercial name or individual elements of this name may be used by the rightholder in his trademark. A commercial name included in a trademark shall be protected independently of the protection of the trademark.