PRESIDENT PROFILE
President Patent Attorney : Nobuyuki Iijima
- Member of the Asian Patent Attorneys Association (APPA)
- Member of the International Association for the Protection of Intellectual Property (AIPPI)
Education
- Rikkyo University (BA in Law)
Qualification
- Patent attorney, admitted in 1979
Additional indication of specific infringement litigation representation (2004)
ASSOCIATES PROFILE
Associated Patent Attorney: Yuji FUJIMORI
- Education: Chuo University (BA in Law)
- Qualification: Patent attorney, admitted in 2005
Additional indication of specific infringement litigation representation (2008)
Associated Patent Attorney: Daichi ITO
- Education: Seikei University (BA in Law)
- Qualification: Patent attorney, admitted in 2014
Additional indication of specific infringement litigation representation (2017)
OUR SERVICES
Trademarks, Designs and Unfair competition etc.
- Acquisition of the right
- Application for trademark/design registration
- Interim processing of trademark and design applications (submission of written opinions and written amendments)
- Trial on trademarks and designs
- Request for an advisory of trademarks and designs
- Retrial on trademarks and designs
- Litigation rescinding a trial decision on a trademark or design
- Application for registration and award of trademarks and designs
- Opposition and request for examination based on the Administrative Appeal Act on Trademarks and Designs
- Strengthening Legal Protection
- Opposition to trademark registration
- Trial for invalidation of trademark registration
- Trial for Cancellation of Non-Use of Trademark Registration
- Trial for Invalidation of Design Registration
- Representative of Lawsuit Action for Specific Infringement of Trademark Rights, Design Rights, and Other Intellectual Property Rights
- Warnings against trademark infringements, design infringements, and unfair competition acts
- Arbitration Procedures for Trademarks, Domain Names, etc.
- Legal control of trademark/design rights (procedures for renewal of trademark right, procedures for payment of design right pension, etc.)
- Prevention of conflict
- Appraisal of similarity of trademarks and designs
- Appraisal of value calculation of trademarks and designs
- Investigation of trademarks and designs
- Consultation on trademarks, designs, unfair competition, and copyright infringement
- Corrsspondence with Global Countries
- Applications for trademarks, designs, and copyright registrations in countries around the world
- Interim processing of trademark and design applications (submission of written opinions and written amendments)
- Cooperation with Representatives of Countries Concerning the Protection of Intellectual Property Rights such as Trademarks and Industrial Designs
- Enforcement on counterfeits abroad
- Counseling on counterfeit products overseas
- Performance of applications based on the Madrid Protocol (Madpro)
- Approximately 420 applications (as of April 2017)
- Performance Countries... Total of 92 Countries and 3 Regions (as of April 1, 2015)
[Asia]
India, Indonesia, Cambodia, Singapore, Sri Lanka, Thailand, South Korea, China, Nepal, Pakistan, Bangladesh, the Philippines, Brunei, Vietnam, Malaysia, Myanmar, Maldives, Mongolia, Laos, Taiwan, Hong Kong, Macao (19 Countries and 3 Regions)
[Pacific]
Australia and New Zealand (2 Countries)
[North America]
U.S. and Canada (2 Countries)
[Latin America]
Argentina, Ecuador, Guatemala, Costa Rica, Colombia, Jamaica, Chile, Nicaragua, Panama, Paraguay, Brazil, Venezuela, Peru, Mexico (14 Countries)
[Europe]
EU (Belgium, Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Denmark, Germany, Estonia, Ireland, Greece, Spain, France, Croatia, Italy, Cyprus, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Hungary, Malta, Netherlands, Austria, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Finland, Sweden, the United Kingdom (28 Countries (including Benelux))
Iceland, Azerbaijan, Andorra, Ukraine, Kazakhstan, Switzerland, Norway, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Russia (9 Countries)
[Middle East]
United Arab Emirates (UAE), Israel, Iraq, Iran, Qatar, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, Syria, Turkey, Bahrain, Jordan, Lebanon (12 Countries)
[Africa]
Algeria, Egypt, Tunisia, Nigeria, South Africa, Morocco (6 Countries)
- Procedures for Customs in countries around the world
- Various Counseling on Counterfeits in Japan and Overseas
- Procedures to suspend the import and export of products infringing intellectual property rights (trademarks, designs, etc.) and unfairly competitive compositions in Japan and overseas customs offices
- Procedures for the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry
- Application Procedure for Opinion from the Minister of Economy, Trade and Industry for Suspension of Import and Export of Customs
- Procedures for the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries
- Procedures relating to the Registration of Plant Variety
- Procedures for the Agency for Cultural Affairs
- Copyright Registration Procedures at the Agency for Cultural Affairs
- Other business
- Review of trademarks and designs of naming and logo designs
- Consultation on the Conclusion of a License Agreement on Intellectual Property Rights such as Trademarks and Designs
- Consultation on unfair competition acts and copyrighted works
- Provision of information on trademarks, designs, and other intellectual property rights
NEWS
【Japan】Amendment of Law
- Law to Partially Amend the Unfair Competition Prevention Law was promulgated (May 30, 2018)
On May 23, 2018, the "Bill for Partial Amendment to the Unfair Competition Prevention Act, etc." was passed and enacted, and on May 30, it was promulgated as Act No. 33.
This includes the amendment of the Unfair Competition Prevention Act for the protection of Big Data, etc., the amendment of the Trademark Act for the rationalization of trademark applications, and the amendment of the Design Act to extend the exception period for loss of novelty of design applications from six months to one year.
- Decrease in Trademark Official Fees
Following the cabinet approval of the draft Law Amending Part of the Patent Law on March 13, 2015 and the Cabinet Order implementing the law on January 19, 2016, it was announced that the new law will come into force as from April 1, 2016. According to the new law, the trademark registration fee will be decreased by about 25% (from 37,600 yen to 28,200 yen per class) and the renewal fee will be decreased by about 20% (from 48,500 yen to 38,800 yen per class).
For more information, please contact our office using the contact form.
【Japan】Change of Practice
- Publication of Revision of Trademark Examination Manual (Patent Office, March 19, 2018)
On March 19, 2018, the Patent Office announced the "Revision of the Operation of Examinations to Confirm the Use of Trademarks or the Intention to Use Trademarks," etc.
Especially, the examination practice concerning the pillar of Article 3(1) of the Trademarks Act is greatly changed.
In the past, the maximum number of similar groups within one category for non-violation of Article 3(1) of the Trademark Act was "7", but "22".
However, goods and services to which multiple similar groups currently counted as "1" are assigned will be counted in the future instead of "1".
It should be noted that the revised Examination Manual will apply to applications to be examined on or after the date of publication (April 2, 2018) (including all applications pending in the examination and trial on or after the date of publication).
The handling of retail or wholesale services remains unchanged.
- Change in indication of "Sake" as a Designated Goods (Patent Office, April 13, 2018)
The Patent Office has notified the reason for refusal under Article 6(1) of the Trademark Act and requested the amendment if "sake" is included in the designated goods against the background of the designation of the geographical indication of "sake" by the Commissioner of the National Tax Agency. However, since the geographical indication of "sake" has been recognized as indicating "sake of Japanese origin," the practice has been changed to one that allows the indication of "sake" in the future.
In addition, according to past examination standards, sake included sake "Awamori, Synthetic Sake, Shochu, Shirozake, Non-Japanese Sake, Mirin". However, new sake indication does not include sake "Awamori, Synthetic Sake, Shochu, Shiraku, Non-Japanese Sake, Mirin".
For example, if you wish to register a trademark for Shochu, you must include Shochu in the designated goods.
TRADEMARK & DESIGN SYSTEMS AND PRACTICES IN JAPAN
TRADEMARK
- TRADEMARK PROTECTION IN JAPAN
The trademark right is an exclusive right.
A trademark right holder shall have an exclusive right to use the registered trademark in connection with the designated goods or services. Within this scope, the trademark right holder can monopolize the use of the registered trademark or grant to another person a license to use the registered trademark.
A trademark right holder shall also have a right to prohibit use of a trademark that is identical with or similar to the registered trademark for goods or services identical with or similar to the designated goods or services. If an unauthorized person infringes this scope, the trademark right holder may seek injunction and compensation for damage to prevent the infringement. The trademark right holder can also prevent others from obtaining the trademark registration for a trademark that is identical with or similar to the registered trademark.
As above, the trademark right is a very strong right.
In Japan, filing a trademark application and obtaining registration are prerequisites for securing the trademark right, as Japan adopts the first-to-file principle. Therefore, it is recommended to file a trademark application as early as possible.
When filing a trademark application, it would be necessary to identify the trademark as well as the goods or services for which the protection is sought.
Before filing the application, it would be advisable to carefully examine the scope of actual use and potential future use of the trademark.
OFFICIAL FEE (TRADEMARK)
- OFFICIAL TRADEMARK FEES OF JAPAN PATENT OFFICE
Fee for a trademark application:
JPY12,000 (in one class)
JPY8,600 (for each additional class)
Fee for a defensive trademark application:
JPY24,000 (in one class)
JPY17,200 (for each additional class)
Fee for a renewal application for defensive trademark:
JPY24,000 (in one class)
JPY17,200 (for each additional class)
Registration fee (for 10 years):
JPY28,200 (in one class)
JPY28,200 (for each additional class)
Registration fee (for 5 years):
JPY16,400 (in one class)
JPY16,400 (for each additional class)
Renewal fee (for 10 years):
JPY38,800 ( in one class)
JPY38,800 (for each additional class)
Renewal fee (for 5 years):
JPY22,600 (in one class)
JPY22,600 (for each additional class)
Registration fee for a defensive trademark:
JPY28,200 (in one class)
JPY28,200 (for each additional class)
Registration fee for renewal of defensive trademark:
JPY33,400 (in one class)
JPY33,400 (for each additional class)
*In addition to the above official fees, our professional fee will be charged for each of the procedures. Please feel free to contact us for further information.
OFFICIAL FEE (DESIGN)
- OFFICIAL DESIGN FEES OF JAPAN PATENT OFFICE
Fee for a design application: JPY16,000
Fee for requesting secrecy of design: JPY51,000
Annual fee (1st to 3rd year): JPY8,500 (per year)
Annual fee (4th to 20th year): JPY16,900 (per year)
*In addition to the above official fees, our professional fee will be charged for each of the procedures. Please feel free to contact us for further information.
ACCESS
Access to our office
- Marunouchi Line: Yotsuya 3-chome station 1 minute
- There is a sign "ADVICE LINK" at the entrance of the Bldg.
CONTACT
If you wish to obtain further information from our firm, you may contact us from contact form below. Contact Form