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Argentina

Analysis of IP activity in Argentina suggests that rights holders in the pharmaceutical, sports, cosmetics and education sectors are keen to take advantage of the country’s new regulatory framework for the medical and scientific research of cannabis.

2 Jan 2020

From billboards to influencers: navigating new advertising rules across the Americas

Trademark experts offer insight into the advertising regimes in their respective jurisdictions and, crucially, how brands can avoid falling foul of the law.

16 Dec 2019

Coincidence or corruption? Trump lawyer responds to accusation White House held off Argentina tariffs for trademark reasons

We look at the claim from nonpartisan watchdog Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington that recent trademark activity in Argentina is proof that “President Trump is for sale”.

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1 Jun 2020

Trademark Office issues first opposition decisions since change in law

Argentina’s Trademark Office has issued its first decisions in opposition proceedings since amendments to trademark law and practice were introduced in early 2018. Read more

6 Apr 2020

Cannabis legislation opens the door for pharmaceutical brands in Latin America

With new legislation regulating the use of cannabis-based medicines in Argentina and Brazil, the emerging market is an open playing field for pharmaceutical brands looking to make their mark in Latin America. Read more

24 Jan 2020

Court of Appeals refers to "fruits" of trademark infringement in landmark decision

Referring for the first time to the profits - or “fruits” – obtained by the defendant, Argentina’s Federal Civil and Commercial Court of Appeals has imposed the highest-ever amount of damages in a trademark infringement case. Read more

2 Jan 2020

Twenty counterfeiting hotspots to be aware of in Latin America

Although Asia is often seen as the centre of global counterfeiting activity, sales of fake goods are rising across Latin America. We present 20 markets in the region that are particularly problematic for brand owners. Read more

Anti-Counterfeiting

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14 Oct 2019

Eight counterfeit hotspots in Argentina that brand owners should be aware of

In the latest edition of our regular series on marketplaces around the world that reportedly engage in the trade of counterfeit goods, we head to Argentina. Read more

17 Mar 2018

Argentina’s emergency trademark law amendments and reassuring filing figures; exclusive data analysis

World Trademark Review examines the IP profile of Argentina, exploring the potential impact of the new emergency decree on trademark law, while providing a thorough breakdown on filings at the Argentine register.

24 Jul 2015

Nike obtains victory against online platform operator

In Nike International Ltd v Compañía de Medios Digitales CMD SA, the Federal Civil and Commercial Court of Appeals has held that the operator of the online platform Mas Oportunidades was liable for publishing advertisements for goods that were obviously infringing. Nike had sued the operator after becoming aware that certain users were advertising Nike “replicas” and “imitations”.

10 Sep 2014

Sale of counterfeit goods is criminal offence even if forgery is self-evident

Reversing a prevailing trend in criminal trademark infringement cases, a panel of the Federal Court of Criminal Cassation has held that, irrespective of the circumstances of a case, the sale of goods bearing a forged trademark is an unlawful act punishable under the Trademark Law. Previously, the courts tended to conclude that the sale of counterfeits was not a criminal offence when consumers were not misled.

Brand management

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18 Jul 2019

“An enormous opportunity” – IP provisions of EU-Mercosur Agreement lauded

The European Union and the Mercosur bloc of countries have agreed a comprehensive trade agreement that includes significant IP provisions that rights holders should be aware of. Read more

21 Mar 2018

Enforcing franchise agreements in Argentina: an overview

As part of our Asia and South America series, we provide an overview of the rules that govern the enforcement and termination of franchise agreements in Argentina. Read more

1 Mar 2018

Franchising: a global guide to brand monetisation

In the first of a two-part series, we outline the legislative framework for franchising in nine jurisdictions across Asia and South America. Read more

25 Nov 2016

Bankruptcy is not force majeure to justify non-use

The Argentine Court of Appeals has rejected a defendant's argument that a trademark's proof of use was impossible because the prior owner was in a bankruptcy proceeding which constituted a force majeure event. The court stated that bankruptcy did not constitute “an unforeseeable and unavoidable event” because if it did, insolvent parties could avoid debts by arguing force majeure.

Enforcement and Litigation

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15 Nov 2019

New INPI resolutions on trademark applications and nullity/cancellation actions – what you need to know

Argentina’s National Institute of Industrial Property has passed two new resolutions that will have a significant impact on trademark owners and practitioners. Read more

21 Oct 2019

Likelihood of confusion: new determining factor is brought into play

Argentina’s Civil and Commercial Federal Chamber of Appeals has developed a jurisprudence that changes the way in which the courts address the issue of likelihood of confusion. Read more

29 Jul 2019

Non-traditional marks in Latin America: the current landscape

The acceptance of non-traditional trademarks has increased in most Latin American jurisdictions in recent years. We provide an overview of the current state of play. Read more

9 Apr 2018

Can title of creative work benefit from trademark protection?

In Roemmers v Diamond Films, Argentina's Court of Appeals has upheld the refusal to grant a preliminary injunction against the use of “Una razón para vivir” as a film title.

Government/Policy

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1 May 2019

How an emergency decree transformed the trademark landscape in Argentina

One year after a significant shift in the Argentine trademark landscape, it is time to reflect on how practitioners have adapted and what international rights holders need to know now. Read more

12 Jul 2016

New Civil and Commercial Code establishes rules on advertising

The new Civil and Commercial Code has established a set of basic rules on advertising, and with respect to comparative advertising it reflects the principles established by the Argentine courts.

5 Jul 2016

The right of publicity in Argentina

The new Argentine Civil and Commercial Code includes a person’s right to his or her own image and voice. This is the second article of a series of three which started with franchising, continues today with the right of publicity and the name of legal entities, and will conclude with the rules on advertising (particularly comparative advertising).

28 Jun 2016

A new Civil and Commercial Code for Argentina

In August 2015, a new Civil and Commercial Code came into force in Argentina. The new code unifies certain regulations that were contained in the former Civil Code, the former Commercial Code and in a number of the laws which supplemented them.

Law Firms

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3 Aug 2016

An IP marketing revolution? Changing attitudes to marketing in Latin American law firms

With an increasingly competitive IP legal market in Latin America, law firms are having to adapt and grow their marketing activity to stand out from the crowd. While little attention has been paid to marketing strategies in the past, today sees significant investment being made to effectively cut through the cluttered IP market. This week, the WTR 1000 research team looks at how Latin American IP law firms, big and small, have evolved their marketing in recent years.

IP Offices

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8 Mar 2018

Assessing Argentina's emergency trademark law upgrade

A government-issued emergency decree is set to shake up trademark practice in Argentina. Key to its success will be how the Argentine Patent and Trademark Office manages the transition, so we analyse what practitioners should be mindful of going forward. Read more

Online

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27 Nov 2014

Supreme Court's Rodríguez v Google decision represents victory for search engines

In Rodríguez v Google Inc, the Supreme Court has ruled that search engines may be held liable for third-party content only if they fail to remove such content after having been requested to do so. Although the main issue in this case was the alleged infringement of the plaintiff’s rights to honour and image, the decision is a clear guide on how trademark owners should proceed when facing infringements online.

8 Apr 2014

New domain names regulations aim to bolster fight against cybersquatters

The registry for ‘.ar’ domain names, NIC Argentina, has been introducing changes to the way in which ‘.ar’ domain names are registered, handled and renewed. The aim is to optimise the operation of ‘.ar’ domain names and to fight cybersquatting. Among other things, NIC Argentina will now charge an official fee of between $20 and $30 for registrations, renewals, assignments and disputes. In contrast to many other countries, the registration or renewal of domains names used to be free in Argentina.

30 Mar 2010

Domain name registrants required to update their data

NIC Argentina, the registry responsible for the ‘.ar’ country-code top-level domain, has announced that it would be implementing a new system to register and administer Argentine domain names. All current registrants of ‘.ar’ domain names must update the data held for them in NIC Argentina's database by March 31 2010.

15 Jul 2009

Number of ‘.ar’ domain names limited to 200 per registrant

NIC Argentina, the registry responsible for the ‘.ar’ country-code top-level domain, has announced that it is limiting the number of domain names that any one entity can register to a maximum of 200. The registry hopes that this will put an end to the registration of ‘.ar’ domain names for speculative purposes.

Portfolio Management

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27 Jun 2019

New PTO resolution brings significant changes to Argentina’s trademark system

Resolution 123/2019 of the Argentinean Patent and Trademark Office, which clarifies some of the changes recently introduced by the amended Trademark Law and sets forth additional rules, has entered into force. Read more

30 Apr 2019

New implementing regulations introduce important changes to trademark law and practice

Decree 242/2019, which was passed by the Argentine Executive on 3 April 2019, regulates a large number of provisions of the Trademark Law, as amended in 2018. Importantly, the decree regulates the requirement to file a declaration of use within five years of the date of registration. Read more

26 Jul 2018

New INPI resolution on administrative opposition procedure - what you need to know

Following the introduction of major changes to Argentina’s trademark legislation in January, the National Institute of Industrial Property has now issued Resolution P-183, which regulates the administrative opposition procedure.

7 Feb 2018

Significant changes to trademark law and practice introduced

The government has issued a new executive order, effective as of January 12 2018, which contains amendments to the regulations on industrial property rights.

Trademark law

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19 Sep 2017

Argentina trademark fees set to increase upwards of 50% as government attempts to curb inflation

Brand owners wishing to protect their trademark rights in Argentina should prepare for increased costs, as the country’s IP office recently implemented a two-stage set of fee rises.

19 Apr 2017

Local company should have known of existence of identical foreign mark when filing application

In Germaiz SA v Bonomelli SRL and Bonomelli SRL v Germaiz SA, both parties had filed an application for the mark CUORE for goods in Class 29, and both had opposed each other’s application. The Court of Appeals found that Germaiz had acted in bad faith, as it was engaged in the same field of activity as Bonomelli and could not have ignored the existence of an identical foreign mark.

25 Feb 2016

Stay of statute of limitations for mediation no longer applies to trademark proceedings

Recent amendments have modified the Mediation Law and the Trademark Law with respect to the term within which to seek withdrawal of an opposition or otherwise to submit a dispute to mandatory mediation prior to filing a judicial complaint for a decision on the merits.

27 Jan 2016

Curacid prevails in complicated dispute

An interesting decision on trademark use was recently handed down in the complicated case of Curacid America Corporation v Finadiet SACIF e I (Case 2591/97) and Finadiet SACIFISA v Curacid America Corporation (Case 1326/00).

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13 Jul 2020

@WTRmagazine Challenges in Canada: how CIPO is tackling a backlog caused by covid-19, legislative change and the Madrid Protocol… https://t.co/qTQn0qiFG7 Read more

13 Jul 2020

@WTRmagazine A WTR investigation finds technology giants Apple and Huawei have secured the most trademark registrations in North… https://t.co/ipVKnT7Urj Read more

13 Jul 2020

@WTRmagazine A tale of conflicting data sets: filing and litigation statistics paint a contrasting picture of the US trademark l… https://t.co/m9iM5bJwHq Read more

13 Jul 2020

@WTRmagazine “Psychological dominance” – study reveals power of trademarks and fragility of functionality doctrine.… https://t.co/N7oeKIs3hI Read more

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Sarah (Hongmei) Yuan

Partner

Beijing, China

Hengdu Law Firm

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