Argentina
Renewal Proceedings: New Disposition No. M-520/10
Owner inconsistencies in trademark renewal proceedings must be amended with the pertinent documents showing the legitimacy of the applicant who filed the trademark renewal. The legitimacy must exist before or at the moment of renewing the respective trademark. Otherwise the nullity or rejection of the renewal proceeding could be declared.
This disposition has the purpose to avoid serving office actions in TM renewal proceedings, where the registered owner of the trademark to be renewed and the applicant stated in the renewal application are inconsistent. In such cases a
inextensible term of 90 consecutive days will start running as from the filing of the renewal, so that the applicant proves his legitimacy to apply for this renewal (according to Art. 9 of the Argentinean TM Law, only the owners have the right to renew their trademarks).
In those cases, where these inconsistencies (between owner and renewal applicant) are due to simple material mistakes and same can be rectified, the above-mentioned term can be extended up to
150 consecutive days, so that the applicant of the renewal files the pertinent documentation and justifies the circumstances that would infer his legitimacy on the renewal application.
This legitimacy must exist before or at the expiration date of the trademark to be renewed.Once the aforesaid term lapses the TM Office will resolve the proceeding by declaring
the nullity (if no legitimacy is claimed or proven by the applicant) or
the rejection (if a statement in that sense is filed without including the pertinent documents) of the renewal application.
The terms mentioned in this disposition are mandatory but not peremptory, i.e. the applicant can prove his legitimacy until the renewal proceeding is resolved by the TM Office.
This disposition entered in force on April 29, 2010 and will be applied to renewal proceedings that have not been resolved until that date.
06.2010
