Region: Russian Federation

In welcome news for business owners, the Russia Patent and Trademark Office has released an information notice, which states that the system to object to bad-faith trademark applications has been significantly amended to include company names.

07 October 2020

The Russian Patent and Trademark Office clearly states that trademark rights cannot be transferred if there is any chance that consumers may be misled as to the goods or services provided, making it key to evaluate whether such a risk is present at the time of assignment recordal.

30 September 2020

Although it has become harder to obtain patent-term extensions for drugs, pesticides or agricultural chemicals, a careful approach can still result in Rospatent granting supplementary protection.

09 September 2020

When it comes to filing Russian patents, prosecution can be significantly accelerated by using the patent prosecution highway programme, which is widely available and involves no additional official fees. While this is also available to applicants of Eurasian patents, there are other paths to obtaining a decision to grant that can be highly effective.

12 August 2020

Data reveals that international entities are keen to register design applications in Russia. But applicants need to be aware of the differences between Russian national and international application examination procedures.

29 July 2020

As of 27 July 2020 geographical indications will be introduced as a form of intellectual property in Russia. However, case law suggests that applicants will continue to take the somewhat complicated trademark registration route in order to obtain exclusive rights to geographically themed designations.

22 July 2020

Russian courts take a fairly strict approach to assessing equivalence in patent claims. It is therefore crucial to pay careful attention to wording to prevent third parties from using the essence of the patented invention in their designs.

15 July 2020

A recent Supreme Court ruling in Trivium-XXI LLC v Federal Customs Service may end the frustrating situation for brand owners seeking to record their trademarks or copyrighted works with Russian Customs.

17 June 2020

In the face of the unprecedented demand for online services brought about by covid-19-related quarantine measures, the Russian Ministry of Culture has renewed its attempts to tighten existing anti-piracy legislation with new proposed amendments.

03 June 2020

The advertising market has been significantly affected by the covid-19 pandemic and the resulting financial fallout. Deputy Minister Alexey Volin addressed the issue of market shrinkage at a meeting of the State Duma Committee on Information Policy, IT and Communications on 12 May.

27 May 2020