The Turkish Market Has Long Been Viewed as an Attractive Area for Growth
Turkey has been among the fastest growing insurance markets of its size in Europe. Along with the rapid growth in the Turkish Insurance sector, there have been major changes to the insurance legislation in the last few years. New legislation has improved the regulatory framework and has brought the industry more into line with international practice. Although the top three insurers are Turkey-based, the market as a whole has a high level of foreign investment due to the fact… »
The Bliss of Forgetting – An Analysis Of The Right To Be Forgotten Under Turkish Law Practice
On 17 June 2015, the General Assembly of the Civil Chambers of the Court of Appeals rendered an interesting verdict regarding the right to be forgotten. According to this verdict, an individual could ask for his or her name to be erased from even law books, if the relevant book includes personal information which the relevant individual would not like to share with public. The verdict is interesting from a number of aspects. Firstly, it is a decision made by not only a single… »
Article 7/1(b) of the Trademark Decree-Law Versus the Principle of Co-Existence
Article 7/1(b) of the Trademark Decree-Law (556) provides for absolute refusal during the ex officio examination of the Turkish Patent Institute (TPI) by stating that a trademark “identical or indistinguishably similar to a trademark registered earlier or with an earlier filing date for registration in respect of identical or same type of products or services shall not be registered”. Pursuant to this provision, a trademark which is identical or indistinguishably similar to… »
TURKEY: New IP Code Open to Comment
Turkey’s Ministry of Science, Industry and Technology circulated a draft IP Code on the website of the Turkish Patent Institute (TPI) for the opinions of relevant stakeholders, which includes anyone who would like to comment, but chiefly Non-governmental Organizations, business sector associations, IP-focused associations and IP law firms on February 24, 2016. The new IP Code that is being discussed consolidates the Turkish Decree-Laws on Trademarks, Patents, Industrial… »
The New Post-Grant Opposition System
After years of discussions, the new draft IP Law – which is expected to be enacted this year – introduces a post-grant opposition system for national patent filings in Turkey. The legislature is introducing a post-grant opposition system in order to bring Turkish law into line with the European Patent Convention system. However, the post-grant opposition system set out in the draft law has some small differences from the convention system. Third parties may file an opposition… »
Stronger Patent Protection for Patent Applicants and Owners
The draft IP Law introduces provisions to strengthen the protection of the rights of both patent applicants and patent owners (for further details please see “TPI finally publishes new draft law”). The current Patent Decree-Law provides that a patent applicant benefits from all of the protection enjoyed by a patent owner. However, the decree-law sticks with this basic principle and does not go into detail. Therefore, the protection of patent applicants’ rights has become a… »
New Draft Industrial Property Code Unifies Previous Laws in Single Code
On February 24 2016, the Turkish Patent Institute (TPI) produced the new Draft Industrial Property Code. It was circulated for a period of consultation which finished on March 4 2016. It is expected that the draft code will be sent to the Council of Ministers within the next few weeks. The authorities are hopeful that it will come into force before the end of the year. In order to become a part of the Customs Union, Turkey had to harmonise its national IP laws with EU… »
In Search Of A Smart Judiciary In Turkey And Europe
Mehmet Gün, senior partner at Gün + Partners, Istanbul, traverses the gaps in Turkish and continental civil procedure, where inefficient disclosure rules are choking an overloaded justice system arguably leading to double procedural standards and high budgetary costs for some EU member states Turkey’s desire to join the European Union is well-known. Lesser known is the response of the EU policymakers to issues that arise from the same root cause as in the Turkish justice… »
Official Trademark Bulletin Now Published Twice a Month
On February 18 2016, the Turkish Patent Institute (TPI) announced that the Official Trademark Bulletin will now be published twice a month. The bulletin was previously published on the 12th of each month but will now be published on the 12th and 27th of each month or the next working day if either of those days falls at the weekend. This change is expected to require a much stricter follow-up of the bulletin and the legal opposition deadlines in order to avoid the possible… »
Appetite for Iranian Uncertainty
In light of the Turkish Prime Minister’s recent visit to Iran, the removal of sanction is opening up new opportunities for Turkey; with other nations following suit. Upon confirmation from the International Atomic Energy Agency that Iran has completed the necessary preparatory steps to start the implementation of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action on January 16, 2016, both the US and the EU announced that certain economic and financial sanctions had been lifted. On the… »
Outside Influence
Turkey has been among the fastest growing insurance markets of its size in Europe. Along with the rapid growth in its insurance sector, there have been major changes to its legislation in the last few years. New laws have improved the regulatory framework and brought the industry more in to line with international practice. Although its top three insurers are Turkey-based, the market has a high level of foreign investment from Gulf countries, Malaysia and Europe. The current… »
TPI Finally Publishes New Draft IP Law
On February 24 2016 the Turkish Patent Institute (TPI) published its long-awaited draft IP Law proposing amendments to patent rights in Turkey. The government has decided to regulate all IP rights in a single act: Book 4 of the act covers patent rights, while Book 5 covers common clauses for all IP rights (ie, trademarks, geographical indications, designs and patents). Improvements The draft appears to be promising, particularly in comparison to the previous proposals to… »