IP Key LA joins WIPO and DIGEPIH in a workshop on Trade marks

IP Key LA and the EU brought their experience in convergence and harmonization criteria to the Trade mark Experts Sub Regional Workshop of Central American countries and the Dominican Republic jointly organized by the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) and The General Direction of Intellectual Property of Honduras (DIGEPIH).

Ricardo Ferreira, Deputy Project Leader of IP Key LA, and Carolina Pitarch, from the International Cooperation and Legal Affairs Department at EUIPO, participated in two sessions of the event, which took place in Honduras. The first was dedicated to the revision and interpretationof aspects related to the substantive examination of distinctive signs, as well as to the definition of certain concepts thereof. Furthermore, the principles established in the HarmonizedManual on the criteria for registration of distinctive signs for the Central American countries and the Dominican Republicwere assessed.

On the second day, Ferreira and Pitarch joined other international experts to discuss "trade dress" protection and its relation to other IP rights.

The event helped explore the situation of trade mark practice in Central American countries and the Dominica Republic, to assess the status quo within the different countries, to demonstrate the importance of homogeneous practices in trade mark procedures, and to foster the incorporation of best practices in proceedings of registration and protection of trade marks.