Turkey: Is new IP Code in line with EPC?
The new Industrial Property Code entered into force in January 2017 and repealed Decree Law No 551 on Patents and other decree laws pertaining to IP rights. The new Industrial Property Code only brings a few changes to the Decree Law previously in effect. One of the changes brought by the new Code is that, similar to the European Patent Convention to which Turkey is a party, a post-grant opposition system has been introduced. Accordingly third parties may oppose against the… »
Welcome Reforms to Trade Mark Protection
Turkey’s long-awaited Industrial Property Code number 6769 has entered into force upon publication in the Official Gazette on January 10 2017. The IP Code is mostly welcome as the Turkish IP regime has needed reform for a long time. Except for copyright, the main IP rights, namely patents, geographical Indications, industrial designs and trade marks were all regulated in the form of decree-laws which entered into force 20 years ago. The legal texts were mostly compatible with… »
Patent Provisions of Turkey’s New IP Law
The long-awaited Industrial Property Law numbered 6769 finally came into force in Turkey on January 10 2017. The new law regulates all IP rights in a single code. It consists of 193 articles and six provisional articles divided into five chapters. The first four books of the law regulate trade marks, geographical indications, designs and patent rights respectively. The name of the Turkish Patent Institute has changed to the Turkish Patent and Trademark Office (TPTO) with… »
Amendments to the Advertisement Regulation
Turkish Regulation on Commercial Advertisement and Unfair Commercial Practices (“Regulation”) which is the main regulation regarding advertising has been amended with an amending regulation published in the Official Gazette dated 4 January 2017 and numbered 29938 (“Amending Regulation”). The Amending Regulation, first of all, postpones the enforcement date for the rule allowing the use of name or trademark of the competitor in the comparative advertisement. This rule has been… »
New Industrial Property Code Now in Force
The IP Code has now replaced the respective Decree-Laws pertaining to the protection of trademarks, patents, geographical indications, and industrial designs, unifying them into a single code. The Decree-Laws on the protection of trademarks, patents, and industrial designs will continue to apply to international and national trademark, design, and patent applications filed before January 10, 2017. The application of the old system ends once the application is registered.… »
Corporate Liability: Applicable Criminal Penalties
Introduction Corporate liability remains a highly problematic and criticised issue in Turkey. In Turkish criminal law practice, criminal liability is deemed as personal, and criminal penalties can be imposed only on natural persons for crimes committed under a corporate body. Although the fact that corporate bodies can also commit crimes has long been established by the precedents of the Constitutional Court,(1) criminal penalties are not specifically regulated under the… »
How to Tackle with Data Protection Compliance Projects in Turkey
Following the enactment of the Law on the Protection of Personal Data numbered 6698 (“Data Protection Law”) on April 07, 2016, many organizations began reviewing their level of compliance with the Data Protection Law and initiate conducting compliance projects. Under the Data Protection Law, companies have a transition period of two years meaning that personal data that has been processed prior to the enactment of the law must be brought in compliance with the provisions of… »
Untimely Annulment of Article 14 of Decree-Law No 556 Creates Legal Gap
In decision No 2016/148 E 2016/189 K dated December 14 2016, the Turkish Constitutional Court annulled Article 14 of Decree-Law No 556, following the referral by the Istanbul Second IP Court (in File No 2015/116 E) of an application for the annulment of said article on the ground of unconstitutionality. The decision of the Constitutional Court entered into force on January 6 2017, upon its publication in the Official Gazette. Article 14 of Decree-Law No 556 governed the… »
Life Sciences Newsletter, January 2017
Industrial Property Law is published Selin Sinem Erciyas, Gun + Partners On 10 January 2016, the Industrial Property Law came into force, amending the compulsory licence provision. Article 130 of the Industrial Property Law on “Compulsory Licensing in case of Non-use” rules that in addition to non-use of a patent, “relevant persons… can request compulsory licensing due to the … use of invention subject to the patent not satisfying the national market’s need”. Under Article… »
The Recent Cyber Attacks Against Banks in Turkey: The Legal Situation
On 8 December 2016, a cyber attack was made against Akbank, one of Turkey’s largest banks, and supposedly two other Turkish banks. Akbank released a statement confirming the attack to their IT systems, that it related to the SWIFT system, and stating that they had responded to the attack immediately and taken the necessary precautions. The bank also set forth that the maximum amount of risk faced by the bank is USD $4 million which is covered by its insurance policy. The… »
Turkey: Changes to Anti-Counterfeiting Legislation
The Industrial Property Code (IP Code) entered into force upon publication in the Official Gazette on January 10 2017. The IP Code has now replaced the respective decree-laws (D-L) pertaining to the protection of trade marks, patents, geographical indications and industrial designs, unifying them into a single code. Article 30 of the IP Code extends the scope of offence, compared to the trade mark D-L. Under Article 61/A of the D-L, the “manufacturing, offering for sale and… »
Amendments to Cheque Regulations
Introduction On July 15 2016 Parliament enacted an omnibus act amending several laws. The Law on the Amendment of Some Laws to Improve the Investment Environment focuses on: reducing costs in relation to the investment environment; eliminating the legal differences in relation to R&D incentives; harmonising practices among financial institutions; encouraging foreign investment; and reducing the costs of establishing companies and opening branches. Conversely, the law… »