Ethiopia trademarks deadline extended
6 month extension of deadline to amend or re-register trademarks
Further to our Ethiopia update in March this year (and notification in 2013) reporting that the Ethiopian Intellectual Property Office (“EIPO”) had issued new trademark Directives which came into effect on 24 December 2012, the EIPO has now published a further update.
The Directives required owners of trademark registrations filed before 7 July 2006 to re-register their existing trademarks or to amend the registration period of trade marks filed between 7 July 2006 – 24 December 2012. Previously the first deadline given for this was 18 June 2014, then extended to 23 June 2014.
The EIPO has now announced that the above deadline has been extended by a further six months to 23 December 2014.
We advise owners of existing trademarks under the old law (filed before 7 July 2006) to make applications to re-register or amend their trademarks (filed between 7 July 2006 – 24 December 2012) and apply for a new registration certificate as soon as possible. The EIPO requires the original documents, therefore instructing us well in advance of the deadline is recommended to ensure re-registration or amendment.
If you have any questions or would like assistance with re-registering, please do not hesitate to contact us.
By Claire Brown, Attorney, Trademark Specialist
