Insights
EUROPATENT Case Considers Re-examination and Evaluation Board’s Discretion to Examine Absolute Grounds for Refusal
This long-running case went all the way to the Court of Cassation The Trademarks Department had partially refused the application for EUROPATENT on the grounds of descriptiveness and lack of distinctiveness; the board then decided ex officio to refuse the application for all the services applied for, citing additional grounds for refusal The case was analysed under the provisions of the now-repealed Decree Law No 556, which was in force at the relevant date Absolute… »
The Decision Of The Constitutional Court On The Administrative Fine Imposed By The Personal Data Protection Board
The Constitutional Court in its decision dated 12.10.2023 and numbered 2020/7518, published in the Official Gazette dated 15.12.2023, determined that the deficiencies in the proceedings against the administrative fine imposed by the Personal Data Protection Board (the “Board”) on a global hotel chain (the “Applicant”), in which the Board determined to have violated its obligations to ensure data security, violated the Applicant’s right to property. Within this framework, the… »
PTO Prepares for Administrative Revocation of Trademarks
Article 26 of the Industrial Property Code, which grants the PTO the authority to revoke trademarks, will come into force on 10 January 2024 The PTO has recently released a draft regulation for comment The draft regulation includes procedural details on how revocation requests will be made before the PTO Background The Industrial Property Code No 6769 (IP Code), which entered into force on 10 January 2017, provides that the Turkish Patent and Trademark Office (PTO) has… »
Determination of Royalty in Case of Compulsory License
The institution of “compulsory licensing”, which is regulated firstly in Article 99 of the repealed Decree-Law No. 551 and then, under Article 129 et seq. of the Industrial Property Law (“the IP Code”) in force, as a reflection of TRIPS Article 31, has not been needed to be implemented for long years in our country [Turkey]. However, with the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, it has suddenly gained popularity since it is regarded as a “convenient” tool for abrogating patent… »
Declaration on Use of Patent and Compulsory License
The new IP Codenumbered 6769 abolished the provisions on “the use requirement of patents” and “the evidence of use” of the Decree-Law About the Protection of Patent Rights. The IP Code now focuses on the requirements of use for patents within the provision of a Compulsory License. Accordingly, a patent owner must use the patented invention within three years following the publication of its granted decision in the Official Bulletin (‘the Bulletin’) or within four years from… »
Similarity of Short Trademarks: Patent and Trademark Office Deviates From Practice in Groundbreaking Decision
Minor alterations were previously considered sufficient for consumers to distinguish between short marks The PTO recently held that the word mark M + PLUS was similar to the opponent’s series of earlier M marks The office diverged from standard practice in a decision that focused on the overall impression made by the marks on consumers Background When the Turkish Patent and Trademark Office assesses whether two signs are confusingly similar under Article 6/1 of the… »
New Law on E-Commerce Obliges Platforms to Remove Infringing Content
A new law (No 7416) regarding e-commerce ― announced in the Official Gazette dated 7 July 2022, and coming into effect 1January 2023 ― will oblige sites to take down a product if they receive a legitimate complaint arguing that there is a violation ofintellectual and industrial property rights on their platform. The basic regulation concerning the responsibilities of e-commerce sites regarding the content that they host was included inLaw 5651 on the Regulation of Internet… »
Turkish IP Office Rules on Similarity of Figurative Marks: Timberland’s Tree Emblem
Timberland is one of the most famous and prestigious footwear brands, especially known by its original waterproof ‘yellow’ boots, which have defined the brand since their invention in 1973. Timberland is also the owner of the tree device mark shown below, which is broadly used on its products, including footwear and apparel, as well as on any kind of promotional material of the company. Due to the value and good reputation of the brand, not only the design of the yellow… »
Recent Developments Within The Turkish Patent And Trademark Office
Service by publication has come into effect Turkish Patent and Trademark Office put discussions over well-known trade mark registry on its agenda Turkish Patent and Trademark Office’s official website was updated Service by publication has come into effect Notification procedure was a significant issue at the Turkish Patent and Trademark Office (Office) since it not only causes delays in the application processes but also affects the IP right holders using their rights.… »
Creative and Innovative Women on the Stage on World Intellectual Property Day!
World Intellectual Property Day is celebrated every year to raise awareness on intellectual property on 26 April which is the establishment date of the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) and this year’s theme is creative and innovative women. The importance of gender equality is apparent in the field of intellectual property, as it is in every field. Throughout history, women made undeniable contributions to science, art and technology despite all difficulties… »
PTO Confirms Similarity of Virtual and Physical Goods in Landmark Decision
A company based in the US opposed an application for goods and services in Classes 25 and 35 based on an earlier mark in Classes 9, 35 and 41 The PTO found that the physical goods/services covered by the application were similar to the virtual and online goods/services covered by the opponent’s mark The similarity of virtual and physical goods/services has recently been a hot topic across the world In a decision issued on 31 March 2023 (which was subsequently finalised)… »
Highly Logical: Turkish IP Office's Vulcan Salute Ruling Sets Final Frontier For Copyright Ownership Argument
According to Article 6/6 of the Turkish Industrial Property Code, “An application for registration of a trademark shall be refused upon the opposition of the right holder if it consists of a person’s name, trade name, photography, copyright or any other intellectual property right of another.” Based on this provision, it is possible to oppose an application relying upon the opponent’s other intellectual property rights ownership. On December 20 2022, the Re-Examination and… »
News and Events
Barış Kalaycı spoke in Pharmaceutical Trade Marks Group 99th Conference
"According to latest annual report of Pharmaceutical Security Institute, medicines intended for Turkish market were identified in 198 new incidents that were detected in 44 countries located in seven different regions of the world, thus, Turkey is now considered as one of the global suppliers of diverted and counterfeit medicines. Baris Kalayci, chair of our anti-counterfeiting practice, spoke on ""Fighting Counterfeit and Diverted Medicines in and from Turkey"" at…
Better Justice Association, Structural Reforms Summit
"Kurucusu olduğumuz Daha İyi Yargı Derneği çatısı altında ülkemizin daha iyisini ve ilerisini gerçekleştirmesi için çalışıyoruz. Daha İyi Yargı Derneği’nin TÜRKONFED ile birlikte 24 Ekim 2019’da Ankara’da düzenlediği zirvede Yapısal Reform, hukukun üstünlüğü ve hesapverirlik önerilerimizi paylaşacağız. Detaylı bilgi ve kayıt için tıklayınız: http://www.dahaiyiyargi.org/haberler-duyurular/yapisal-reformlar-zirvesi-24-ekimde-ankarada/"
World Trademark Review (WTR) 1000 2021 Rankings Are Announced
We are pleased to announce that we have been named as the top tier firm and our 8 practitioners are recognized as the leading individuals in the World Trademark Review (WTR) 1000: The World’s Leading Trademark Professionals 2021. WTR 1000 focuses exclusively on trademark practices and practitioners, has established itself as the definitive ‘go-to’ resource for those seeking world-class legal trademark expertise.…
Announcement of New Managing Associate and Senior Associate Promotions, 2022
We are pleased to announce the continued growth of our firm with the promotion of Cansu Akbıyıklı to managing associate, Emine Taşkıran and Fatma Sevde Tan to senior associate taking effect from 1 March 2022.
Webinar: World IP Day - IP and Youth: Innovating for a Better Future – Trademarks and Copyrights Perspective
Gün + Partners celebrated the World IP Day with webinars. Enjoy the fireside chat between Ugur Aktekin and our guest Ashli Weiss Uğurlu discussing IP and Youth: Innovating for a Better Future – Trademarks and Copyrights Perspective. Topics How Ashli, as a young and passionate IP lawyer, has used IP as an innovative tool while building her own career How young entrepreneurs shall benefit from IP, in particular trademarks and copyrights, while starting up their…
Asena Aytuğ Keser Is Promoted as Managing Associate
We are pleased to announce the promotion of Asena Aytuğ Keser as our new managing associate. Asena has been with Gün + Partners since 2011. She specializes in dispute management, employment, business crimes and anti-corruption, and insurance and reinsurance practices. Asena advises and represents clients in various commercial disputes before courts and arbitral tribunals, including high profile compensation cases, M&A and shareholders disputes, insurance disputes, and…
Mehmet Gün and Pelin Baysal to speak in Turkish-Ukrainian Infrastructure Forum
"Mehmet Gün, our founding partner and Pelin Baysal, co-chair of our dispute management practice will be panellists at ""Turkish-Ukrainian Infrastructure Forum: Creating Opportunities Together"" on November 13 at Fairmont Grand Hotel, Kyiv, Ukraine, organized by our firm Gün + Partners together with Ukrainian Arbitration Association (UAA), International Turkish Ukrainian Businessmen Association (TUID) and Integrites. Click below for…
Beril Yayla Sapan and Edanur Atlı Introduced Gün + Partners at Bilkent University’s 10th Law Students Forum
Our lawyers Beril Yayla Sapan, partner and a graduate of Bilkent University Faculty of Law, and Edanur Atlı attended the 10th Law Students Forum organized by Bilkent University Career in Law Club on Sunday, February 27, and introduced our office.
Mehmet Gün Spoke at the Better Justice Association Conference
Mehmet Gün, president of Better Justice Association, spoke on the the innovative solutions they developed for the judicial system of Turkey at the "Turkish Judicial Reform A to Z" Conference.
Baran Güney Will Talk at “Evolving Regulation of the Use of Consumer Reviews” webinar by International Advertising Association
Consumer reviews have become an important part of the advertising ecosystem and these reviews can be very influential to potential customers when they are making a purchasing decision. Marketers use reviews in advertising, they host reviews on their websites, they encourage consumers to post reviews on other sites, and some even try to prevent customers from posting negative reviews at all. “Evolving Regulation of the Use of Consumer Reviews” webinar by International…
IAM Patent 1000 - The World's Leading Patent Professionals Rankings 2022 Announced
The 2022 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 6 practitioners are recognized as the leading individuals in the IAM Patent 1000 - The World's Leading Patent Professionals 2022. The guide is the definitive resource for those seeking to identify world-class individual and firm-wide private practice patent expertise.
Dicle Doğan Met with University Students at Istanbul Bilgi University 21st Career Days in Law
Dicle Doğan, managing associate in our life sciences and intellectual property practices, represented Gün + Partners at the 21st Career in Law Days organized by Istanbul Bilgi University Faculty of Law. Dicle Doğan met with university students, talked about career opportunities, employee experience, operating models of our practice areas, and responded to students’ questions.