Trademark and its Registration in Azerbaijan. Patent Attorney

We have the right of ownership to the signs, performances, inventions, programs and etc. that we create through intellectual labor. This type of property right is Intellectual Property (IP) Rights. Intellectual Property Law (IP Law) is our guarantor for such proprietary rights. Thus, the main function of the IP Law is the recognition and protection of our Intellectual Property (IP) rights. Types of Intellectual Property (IP): Trademark, Patent, Copyright, Franchising, Trade Secrets.  In this blog post, we will inform you about the registration and protection of Intellectual Property (IP) Rights in Azerbaijan.

I. Trademark and its registration in Azerbaijan.

Trademark is a mark that distinguishes the goods or services of an entrepreneur from the goods or services of another entrepreneur. According to the legislation of Azerbaijan, the following marks can be registered as trademarks:

• Words, personal names, letters, numbers, descriptive elements, shape of the goods or their packaging, colors. Also, any combination of these.

However, note that for Trademark registration in Azerbaijan, it is not enough for the mark to be one of the above-mentioned categories. Thus, for the registration of a mark as a Trademark in Azerbaijan, it must have two main features:

1. Distinctiveness;
2. The ability to describe visually.

Only a mark that contain these features and fall into one of the categories we’ve listed is Trademark.

A. Trademark registration in Azerbaijan

The institution that performs trademark registration in Azerbaijan is Intellectual Property Agency. The duration of Trademark registration in Azerbaijan can vary from 3 to 8 months.

The process of trademark registration consists of various stages. Foreign companies or individuals must participate in the registration of Trademark in Azerbaijan through a patent attorney. Local companies and individuals are free to apply to the Intellectual Property Agency by themselves.

The following must be indicated in the application for trademark registration in Azerbaijan:

1. Name, place of residence, the signature of the claimant. And if Patent Attorney file the claim the his/her surname, name, address, and signature.
2. The image or three-dimensional form of mark (if the mark is three-dimensional);
3. List of goods and services for the registration of marks according to the Nice classification;
4. The color of the trademark;
5. Transliteration and translation of the mark or a certain part of it.

The following is attached to the application:

1. A document confirming the payment of the service fee (payment);
2. A document confirming the powers of the patent attorney when Patent Attorney files the claim (Power of Attorney);
3. The charter of the collective mark, the name of the subject authorized to register the collective mark in its name, the list of all members of the subject entitled to use the collective mark, and the list of goods or services to which this mark belongs, their uniform quality and other features;
4. If necessary, a document confirming the priority of the trademark (by Article 10 of the Law);
5. If necessary, a document confirming the exhibition priority of the trademark.

For additional information, note that, an application for Trademark registration must be in the Azerbaijani language. But other documents may be in the Azerbaijani language or other languages.

B. Why is trademark registration important?

First of all, let us note that trademark registration gives the owner an exclusive right. This means that only the owner of a trademark has the exclusive right to the trademark and may prohibit others from illegally using his/her trademark. In addition, the following reasons prove the importance of trademark registration:

• First, The Trademark distinguishes the goods and services of one manufacturer from the goods and services of another manufacturer. Here the form and design of the commodity are the main features;
• Secondly, Registration protects you from violations of the law and unfair competition. In addition, it gives grounds to rule in favor of the trademark holder in the event of illegal use of the trademark by a third party or in disputes arising in litigation;
• The Trademark guarantees the high quality of the product. This not only increases consumer confidence in the product but also helps them to distinguish it from counterfeit products;
• Recognition of a trademark, is gaining popularity among consumers and helps its owner to earn more in the market.

II. Copyright

Copyright gives the authors and creators of original material the exclusive right to use, copy or reproduce their material. So, The Copyright regulates the legal relations of the use of creative results by people in the fields of science, literature and art. Thus, the works of book authors and music artists are protected by Copyright.

Objects protected by copyright – literary works, such as scientific publications, novels, poems, plays, informational publications, newspapers and magazines, computer programs, databases and multimedia products, films and other audiovisual works, musical and choreographic works, works of visual art, such as paintings, drawings, photographs and sculptures, architectural works, as well as advertising drawings, geographical maps and drawings, etc. can be.

III. Trade Secrets

A trade secret is an operation and practice of a company that is kept secret from the public, providing an economic benefit and advantage to the company and the owner of the trade secret. Trade secrets are the result of company research and development. Legislation is the legal guarantor of trade secret protection. Examples of trade secrets include a design, pattern, recipe, formula, or proprietary process. Trade secrets are used to create a business model that differentiates a company’s offerings to its customers, creating a competitive advantage.

As ACON team, we are at your service with our professional lawyers. Our lawyers have theoretical knowledge and many years of practice in the sphere of Intellectual Property (IP) Law. You can contact our team regarding the registration of trademarks, copyright and etc.

1.  ACON – LAW AND INVESTMENT, Establishment of representative offices and branches of foreign companies,  https://acon.az/establishment-of-representative-offices-and-branches-of-foreign-companies/ (2022).
2. ACON – LAW, AND INVESTMENT, Points to pay attention to in connection with the state registration of companies, https://acon.az/points-to-pay-attention-to-in-connection-with-the-state-registration-of-companies/  (2022)