Insights
SEP: Navigating the Technology-Driven World
Standard-Essential Patents (SEPs) is a concept arising from the interaction between patent rights, which provide exclusive use of an invention and “standards” aimed at the widespread and mandatory use of this innovation in the relevant market. Considering the upward trend in patent litigation arising from SEPs, it would be fair to say that SEP has become patent law’s new buzzword. Licensing SEPs: FRAND Terms Standard Developing Organisations (“SDOs”) determine the technical… »
A New Slant on the Implementation of the Bolar Exemption in Turkish Patent Law
The Bolar Exemption falls under the provision of Article 85(3)/(c) of the Industrial Property Code No. 6769 (IP Code) and regulates the marketing authorisation of pharmaceuticals, the testing and experiments required for this purpose and the exemption of experimental acts involving the patent subject to the invention from the scope of rights protected by the patent. The aim of the Bolar Exemption is to ensure that Gx pharmaceutical products can be put on the market without… »
The First of its Kind: Compensation for Damages Caused by Unfair Preliminary Injunction Decisions in the Pharmaceutical Industry
One must have deep knowledge and experience in many different disciplines to play a role in the solution of complex and multi-layered patent law disputes. One of the most important examples of this situation are compensation actions filed following the abolition of preliminary injunctions in patent disputes related to the pharmaceutical industry. As a matter of fact, the decisions of the courts of first instance and the Court of Appeal in these types of cases give direction… »
Insurance Disputes Comparative Guide
What mechanism do insurance policies usually provide for resolution of coverage disputes? State Courts In Turkish insurance policies, the usual dispute resolution mechanism provided for resolution of coverage disputes is litigation before state courts. As a rule, insurance disputes are resolved before commercial courts. However, insurance disputes regarding maritime law are resolved before specialized courts of maritime and insurances disputes where the insured is a consumer… »
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… »
Advertisement Board: Use of Competitors' Trademarks as Keywords Leads to Unfair Competition
Google Adwords / Google Ads, a type of commercial advertising that has emerged as a result of technological developments, allows advertisers to select keywords related to the product or service they offer and to help determine when and where the ad can be displayed. In this context, Google does not automatically prevent the advertiser from using trademarks or commercial names belonging to competitors in their advertisements. In Google Adwords ads, whoever pays the highest… »
Latest Developments on Administrative Revocation of Trademarks!
While the relevant article regulating the transfer of authority to examine the requests for revocation of trademarks to the Turkish Patent and Trademark Office (“the Office”) was not yet entered into force and there were still a level of uncertainty concerning the procedure, the first development in this regard took place on October 23, 2023 when the Office published and opened the “Draft Regulation for Amendment of the Regulation on the Implementation of the Industrial… »
Corporate Governance in Türkiye 2024
What are the primary sources of law, regulation and practice relating to corporate governance? Is it mandatory for listed companies to comply with listing rules or do they apply on a ‘comply or explain’ basis? The Turkish Commercial Code (TCC) dated 13 January 2011 (Law No. 6102) entered into force on 1 July 2012. The TCC has important objectives, such as ensuring transparency, adopting corporate governance standards and introducing internationally accepted auditing and… »
The Draft Regulation About Cross-Border Transfer of Personal Data, Turkish Standard Contractual Terms and Binding Corporate Rules Guidelines
Within the framework of the amendments to the Turkish Personal Data Protection Law (the “Law”), which will come into force on 1 June 2024, the draft regulation on cross-border data transfer was being expected and has now published by the Turkish Personal Data Protection Authority (the “DPA”) for commentary from public in general. For consideration of data controllers and data processors, major issues set forth under the draft regulation are as follows: Cross-Border Transfers… »
Update on Legal Interest, Late Payment Fee and Deferment Interest Rates
Legal Interest Rate According to Article 1 of the Law No. 3095 on Legal Interest and Default Interest (“Law No. 3095”), interests to be paid as per Turkish Code of Obligations and Turkish Commercial Code, shall be made at an annual rate of 12%, unless a different contractual rate is agreed. The president is authorized to adjust this rate on a monthly basis, and to reduce it by up to 10% or increase it up to one time. The legal interest rate was 9% since January 1, 2006… »
Constitutional Court Annulled the Sanction for Non-Attendance to Mandatory Mediation
Article 18/A of the Law No. 6325 on Mediation in Civil Disputes ("Mediation Law") stipulates that, should the mediation process end due to one of the party’s failure to attend the first meeting without a valid excuse, that party shall be liable for all litigation costs, regardless of whether they partially or fully succeed in the subsequent lawsuit. In addition to that, no attorney fee shall be awarded to such party. The Constitutional Court recently examined… »
How Turkey Tackles Trademark Applications Infringing Upon Copyrighted Works
We love iconic movies, animated TV series, comics, cartoons, and platform games, and enjoy making them a part of our daily life, perhaps by drinking a cup of coffee with a mug bearing a Hogwarts logo or wearing pyjamas featuring Mickey Mouse. They are not just fictional works but also symbols with a cultural effect and commercial value. This often leads to unauthorised use of the titles and characters of these copyrighted works and any other associated signs, both at a… »
News and Events
We Have Been Selected as the “Patent Firm of the Year” in Turkey by Global IP Awards 2023
We are delighted to have been named the winner of the Patent Firm of the Year for Turkey in the Global IP Awards 2023, which recognises the outstanding achievements of law and attorney firms in litigation, prosecution, and transactional work during 2022/2023.
Women in AIPPI Networking Event Sponsored by Gün + Partners
We are proud to be the sponsor of the "Women in AIPPI" networking event bringing together female IP professionals within the scope of the 2023 AIPPI World Congress in Istanbul. Women in AIPPI event will take place on a boat on the magical and unique Bosphorus this year. Women from around the world will meet and network while enjoying the breathtaking beauty of Istanbul from the sea. AIPPI World Congress will be held in Istanbul between 22-25 October, gathering up to 2.000…
Webinar: CJEU Decision Review - The Concepts of Free-Riding and Bad Faith in Reviving a Priorly Well-Known Trademark in light of the Nehera Decision
In the eighth of our Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) decision review webinars, we discussed "Nehera decision" of CJEU. At our webinar; Güldeniz Doğan Alkan, Cansu Evren and Ayşenur Çıtak Bozdağ discussed "Whether refiling of a prior well-known trademark by a third party is a tribute or free-riding?" Topics Summary of the dispute subject to the decision of the CJEU and the court decision Evaluation of the claims of the parties and the approach of the Court on…
Dilan Sıla Kayalıca, Maral Büyükkürkçü and Zeynep Çağla Üstün, Are Listed as Rising Star by Euromoney's MIP IP STARS 2023
We are delighted to announce that Dilan Sıla Kayalıca, Maral Büyükkürkçü and Zeynep Çağla Üstün, senior associates in our intellectual property practice, have once again been recognized as Rising Stars in this year’s IP STARS ranking by Managing IP. Managing IP’s Rising Stars list, recognizes some of the best up-and-coming intellectual property practitioners in private practice who have contributed to the success of their firms and clients.
We Are Pleased to Announce the Recognition of Our Lawyers Among The Legal 500 Private Practice Powerlist 2023 - Dispute Resolution – Türkiye
We are delighted to announce that our founding partner Mehmet Gün, partners Aysel Korkmaz Yatkın and Beril Yayla Sapan and managing associate Asena Aytuğ Keser have been listed in The Legal 500 Private Practice Powerlist 2023 - Dispute Resolution – Türkiye. The Dispute Resolution Powerlist Türkiye, showcases the leading practitioners working in the region who focus primarily on litigation, arbitration, mediation and other forms of dispute resolution. You could reach the…
Hande Hançar Spoke at IP Camp 2023
Hande Hançar, partner in our IP practice and board member of Licensing Executives Society Turkey (LES Turkey), spoke at "The Future of Trademark Licensing in Emerging Tech Industries" session of IP Camp 2023, together with Murat İdal. LES IP CAMP is the premier training event dedicated to Intellectual Property Management and Licensing, organized by LES-Turkey since 2014. Gün + Partners is a proud supporter of IP Camp.
Begüm Yavuzdoğan Okumuş Have Been Recognised as a Lexology Legal Influencer
We are delighted Begüm Yavuzdoğan Okumuş, partner in our TMT practice, have been recognised as a leading author in the Lexology Legal Influencers Q2 2023 for TMT - Europe. Lexology Legal Influencers recognises the thought leaders who over the past months have been consistently providing Lexology with useful, insightful legal analysis within their particular work area grouping and region or country in the legal industry every…
Gün + Partners Top Ranked by IP STARS 2023
We are proud to be listed as top tier firm and our five practitioners are listed among trademark stars and patent stars by Euromoney Managing IP’s IP STARS 2023 which is the leading specialist guide for companies or individuals looking for experienced legal practitioners to deal with contentious and non-contentious intellectual property issues. Managing IP has been covering IP law and practice since 1990. https://www.ipstars.com/Jurisdiction/Turkey/Rankings/8546#rankings
Mehmet Gün, Özge Atılgan Karakulak and Selin Sinem Erciyas are Listed in IAM Global Leaders 2023
Our founding partner Mehmet Gün, and our partners Özge Atılgan Karakulak and Selin Sinem Erciyas are listed in IAM Global Leaders 2023. To qualify for inclusion in the IAM Global Leaders, individuals must be ranked in the gold tier of the IAM Patent 1000, the market-leading annual directory that identifies the top law and attorney firms and individuals in the world’s most significant patent…
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…