New Industrial Property Act passed by Parliament

The Seychelles Parliament has passed the new Industrial Property Act (7/2014), which repeals the Patents Act (5/1901) (Chapter 156), as amended, and the Trademarks Decree No 18/1977 (Chapter 239), as amended.

Although not yet in force, the new act makes provision for the registration and protection of industrial designs, which were previously possible only through the extension of a UK design.

The new act covers unfair competition and sets out specific acts or practices which are contrary to honest practices and, therefore, constitute acts of unfair competition. It also recognises well-known marks, collective marks, three-dimensional marks, geographical indications and trade names.

The new act provides that a trademark registration shall be valid for a period of 10 years from the filing date of the application; currently, trademarks are registered for an initial period of seven years.

Applications filed in the Seychelles are currently renewable for a period of 14 years. A six-month grace period is allowed for the late payment of the renewal fees. Under the new act, the renewal term has been reduced from 14 to seven years.

Lara Kayode, O Kayode & Co, Lagos