Insights
Patent and Trademark Office Almost Loses Authority to Revoke Trademarks – Before It Even Gets a Chance to Use It
Within the context of the entry into force of Article 26 of the Industrial Property Code, there have been heated discussions as to whether the administrative revocation of trademarks is constitutional An IP court applied to the Constitutional Court to annul the office’s authority to revoke trademarks before the office was able to use such authority The Constitutional Court rejected the application due to the court's lack of jurisdiction and did not examine the… »
Article 10: a Hidden Gem of the Turkish Industrial Property Code
Article 10 grants trademark owners the right to request the transfer of a trademark in case of unfair registration in the name of a commercial agent and/or representative The provision offers an underestimated and rarely applied tool for genuine trademark owners A recent Court of Cassation decision involving the marks HOLLIS and OCEANIC highlights the significance of this provision Relevant rule of law Article 10 of the Industrial Property Code (“the IP Code”) reads as… »
AI Regulations In Türkiye: Developments And Implications
Artificial Intelligence (AI) is one of the rapidly advancing technologies that is increasingly being used in practice. AI, which has found widespread application in both the public and private sectors, has become a major agenda item in Turkiye as well. The development and widespread adoption of these applications offer opportunities for increased efficiency in various sectors. However, unlike the regulations established in the European Union, Turkiye currently does not have… »
Pharmaceuticals, Medical Devices, Digitalization: What Awaits the Healthcare Sectors in the 12th Development Plan and the 2025 Presidential Annual Program?
The 12th Development Plan 2024–2028 (“Development Plan”) and the 2025 Presidential Annual Program (“Program”) set the development goals and strategic policies for various sectors in Türkiye. In line with the Development Plan and Program, the pharmaceutical and medical device sectors are among those that emphasize key goals to increase Türkiye’s sustainability in the healthcare field, enhance domestic production capacity, and reduce dependency on imports. Overall, the aim is… »
Developments About Corporate Sustainability in Türkiye
The principle of sustainability initially emerged as a corporate social responsibility notion under the management activities of companies and then, brought along the necessity for companies to act ethically and responsibly towards their stakeholders. The elements of environmental, social and economic sustainability are collectively at the core of corporate social responsibility and this concept is based on the responsibility of companies towards society. It is observed that… »
A New Regulation on the Sanction for Non-Attendance to Mandatory Mediation
The Constitutional Court’s decision dated 14 March 2024 and numbered 2023/160 E., 2023/160 E., 2024/77 K. annulled Article 18/A of the Law No. 6325 on Mediation in Civil Disputes (“Mediation Law”). The annulled provision imposed a sanction on parties causing the mediation to end due to their failure to attend the first mediation meeting without a valid excuse, holding them liable for all litigation costs and attorney fees, even if they were partially or fully justified in the… »
Evaluating Disparaging Practices against Competitors in the Pharmaceutical Sector: A Competition Law Perspective
Evaluating Disparaging Practices against Competitors in the Pharmaceutical Sector: A Competition Law Perspective The competition investigation initiated by the European Commission (the “Commission”) against Vifor Pharma on June 20, 2022, has attracted attention due to the fact that this is the first investigation in which the act of disparaging competitors will be considered as a violation of competition law alone. Competition investigations launched against pharmaceutical… »
International Update
The World Health Organization (WHO) gives pharmaceutical substances international non-proprietary names (INNs) so that each substance can be identified by a distinct name. However, pharmaceutical trade marks cannot be composed entirely of INNs. The rulings of the Court of Cassation (the CoC) indicate that while pharmaceutical trade marks can be derived from INNs, they cannot consist solely of these names. For instance, an action was filed claiming that the defendant’s trade… »
Time Extension Granted: August 7, 2024 - Allocation of Domain Names in Structure of “a.tr”
In addition to domain names such as "com.tr" and "org.tr", which are already being allocated in Türkiye, allocation of domain names in the structure of "a.tr" has also become possible as of September 14, 2023. Domain names in the structure of “a.tr” do not include extensions for generic top-level domains (gTLD) such as ".com", ".net", ".org", etc. but have a direct country code extension of ".tr". The initial allocation of these domain names is carried out by the Information… »
Data Controllers and Processors’ Turn to Take Actions Now!
The Regulation on Procedures and Principles Regarding the Cross-border Transfer of Personal Data (the “Regulation”) is published in the Official Gazette on 10 July 2024. Additionally, the Personal Data Protection Board (the “Board”) announced the standard contract texts, binding corporate rules application forms and supplementary guidelines about essential issues required to be covered by binding corporate rules. Except for cross-border transfers that are irregular, occur on… »
Crypto Asset Regulations Came Into Force
The need for legal regulation regarding crypto assets has been discussed for a considerable time. With the amendments made by Law no. 7518 (the “Law”) introduced to the Law on Capital Markets no. 6362, published in the Official Gazette numbered 32590 dated July 2, 2024, a comprehensive legal basis for crypto assets has been established within the Turkish legal framework for the first time. The Law has authorized the Capital Markets Board (the “Board”) for drafting secondary… »
Dealing With Social Media Influencers - Türkiye
Influencer marketing through social media influencers has achieved giant growth in the advertising sector. Brands, including global and local ones, co-operate with social media influencers to advertise their brands, goods and services because social media influencers are very capable of directing the consumers’ buying habits into certain brands via the presentations, recommendations and compliments they make. Similarly, based on global research statistics, Türkiye ranks… »
News and Events
Our IP Partners Are Listed in WIPR Leaders 2023
Mehmet Gün, Aysel Korkmaz Yatkın, Güldeniz Doğan Alkan, Mutlu Yıldırım Köse, Selin Sinem Erciyas and Uğur Aktekin, partners in our intellectual property practice, are listed in the WIPR Leaders 2023 from Turkey. The guide profiles the leading IP executives across the world. The handbook lists over 2,500 lawyers across patent, trademark, and copyright practices after an extensive nomination period. In order to reach the WIPR Leaders 2023, please click here.
Baran Güney Spoke at Hot Topics in Global Environmental Marketing Webinar
Baran Güney, managing associate in our TMT practice, spoke at Hot Topics in Global Environmental Marketing webinar hosted by Practicing Law Institute in cooperation with the Global Advertising Lawyers Alliance.
IAM Patent 1000 - The World's Leading Patent Professionals Rankings 2023 Announced
The 2023 edition of the IAM Patent 1000: The World’s Leading Patent Professionals has been released online. We are proud to announce that we have been recognised as the top tier firm and our 8 practitioners are recognized as the leading individuals in the IAM Patent 1000 - The World's Leading Patent Professionals 2023. The IAM Patent 1000 focuses exclusively on patent practice and has firmly established itself as the definitive 'go-to' resource for those seeking world-class…
Selin Sinem Erciyas Spoke at Intellectual Property and Innovation Summit 2023, Europe
Managing IP’s Intellectual Property and Innovation Summit - Europe, took place at The Leonardo Royal Hotel London City, London on 7 - 8 June. Selin Sinem Erciyas, partner in our patent and utility models practice, spoke at "What are the latest legal developments impacting the life sciences industry?" panel.
Özge Atılgan Karakulak Co-chaired 9th Annual IBA World Life Sciences Conference
The 9th Annual IBA World Life Sciences Conference took place on 1 - 2 June 2023 in Washington DC, USA. Özge Atılgan Karakulak, partner in our Life Sciences practice and Advisory Board Member of IBA Intellectual Property and Entertainment Law Committee, was the co-chair of the conference and she co-moderated the “Significant International pos-pandemic IP policies. A worldwide review” panel on 2nd of June.
Better Justice Association presents judicial reform proposals to politicians and global legal experts at the European Parliament and UK House of Lords
Gün + Partners believes that it will be possible for Turkey to achieve an advanced level of welfare for its citizens and for it to take its position among the developed countries by asserting the rule of law and through promoting an advanced democracy. The Turkish judiciary needs to be efficient, transparent and totally independent in order to ensure the rule of law. In keeping with this belief, we make every possible effort support Better Justice Association’s activities…
Congratulations to Our Practitioners Recognized by WWL, They Have Listed Among the Best Professionals in Their Expertise
Congratulations to our practitioners recognized by WWL, they have listed among the best professionals in their expertise. WWL findings are based on recommendations and feedback from eminent private practitioners in the sector or industry in question as well as from corporate counsel or other clients who have worked closely with the nominees. Over the past 24 years, WWL is one of the most trusted resources for in-house counsel, government, agency and other legal…
We Are the "Firm of the Year" by Managing IP EMEA Awards 2023
We are honored to have been selected as the "Firm of the Year" in "Patent Prosecution", "Patent Disputes" and "Copyright" categories in Turkey by Managing Intellectual Property EMEA Awards 2023 which are presented to firms, individuals and companies behind the most innovative and challenging IP work of the past year, as well as those driving the international IP market. The award ceremony attended by representatives of the world's leading law firms and consultancy firms…
Baran Güney Spoke at "Global Advertising Law Year in Review" Webinar by GALA
Baran Güney, senior associate in our TMT practice, talked about ''Overview of some of the key developments in advertising law over the last year in Turkey at "Global Advertising Law Year in Review" webinar by GALA
Barış Kalaycı Spoke at Anti-Counterfeit & Brand Protection Conference
Barış Kalaycı, partner in our anti-counterfeiting practice was the chairperson of day one at EMEA Security Conference & Exhibition | High Security Printing, Anti-Counterfeiting & Brand Protection. Barış Kalaycı spoke on "The Global threat of Trade in Falsified Medicines: A Danger to Health and Development" panel.
Hande Hançar Spoke at "New Developments in Environmental Marketing Regulation, Europe" Webinar
Hande Hançar, partner in our TMT practice, discussed about the recent developments in the laws and standards governing environmental marketing in Europe with lawyers from the GALA (Global Advertising Lawyers Alliance) at "New Developments in Environmental Marketing Regulation, Europe" webinar by IAA (International Advertising Association).
Webinar: World IP Day – Conversation on Women and IP: Accelerating Innovation and Creativity
Gün + Partners celebrated the World IP Day with webinars. Enjoy the fireside chat between Mutlu Yıldırım Köse and our guests Prof. Özlem Er and Prof. Şebnem Timur. This webinar concentrates on why it’s important to increase the IP awareness of women for accelerating innovation and creativity and they will be discussing on below topics. The role of women in industrial design Importance of IP for designers, importance of protecting their designs IP disputes/problems that…