Protocol Relating to the Madrid Agreement
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| Protocol Relating to the Madrid Agreement | |
|---|---|
| Name | Protocol Relating to the Madrid Agreement |
| Date signed | 1989 |
| Location signed | Madrid |
| Parties | World Intellectual Property Organization, member States of the Paris Convention for the Protection of Industrial Property, members of the Madrid Union |
| Language | English language, French language |
Protocol Relating to the Madrid Agreement
The Protocol Relating to the Madrid Agreement is an international treaty that amends the Madrid Agreement Concerning the International Registration of Marks to create the Madrid System for the international registration of trademarks. Negotiated amid late 20th-century efforts to harmonize intellectual property law, the Protocol modernized procedures to accommodate both European Economic Community developments and broader participation by States outside the European Patent Organisation and Benelux arrangements.
Background and Negotiation
Negotiations leading to the Protocol involved delegations from the World Intellectual Property Organization, representatives of the United States, Japan, China, India, Brazil, Canada, and member States of the European Union, including France, Germany, Italy, Spain, United Kingdom. Observers included the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, the United Nations, and regional bodies such as the African Union, the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, and the Arab League. Key legal advisers drew on precedents from the Paris Convention for the Protection of Industrial Property, the Bern Convention for the Protection of Literary and Artistic Works, and the Nice Agreement Concerning the International Classification of Goods and Services. Diplomatic activity referenced meetings at the World Intellectual Property Organization Conference and consultations with national offices such as the United States Patent and Trademark Office, the European Union Intellectual Property Office, and the Japanese Patent Office.
Key Provisions and Mechanisms
The Protocol introduced substantive and procedural changes that recalibrated rights under the Madrid Agreement Concerning the International Registration of Marks and created mechanisms compatible with national practice in diverse jurisdictions including Mexico, South Africa, Russia, Australia, New Zealand, Argentina, Chile, Colombia, Switzerland, Sweden, Norway, Denmark, Finland, Poland, Czech Republic, Hungary, Romania, Bulgaria, Greece, Portugal, Turkey, Israel, Egypt, and Thailand. It established the role of the International Bureau of WIPO in receiving applications, recorded priority claims under the Paris Convention for the Protection of Industrial Property, and set time limits for refusals that aligned with practices in the European Patent Office and national offices. The Protocol allowed international registrations based on national or regional applications and introduced principles affecting renewal procedures, assignment, and transformation that reflected jurisprudence from courts such as the European Court of Justice and national tribunals including the Supreme Court of the United States and the High Court of Australia.
Membership and Ratification
Ratification was pursued by a wide array of countries, with early ratifiers including Spain, United Kingdom, France, Republic of Korea, Singapore, Switzerland, Sweden, Norway, and Denmark. Subsequent accessions were recorded from large markets such as China, United States of America (through policy alignment with existing practice), India, Brazil, Mexico, Argentina, South Africa, Turkey, Israel, Egypt, United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Indonesia, Philippines, Malaysia, Vietnam, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Kazakhstan, Ukraine, Belarus, Croatia, Slovakia, and Slovenia. Accession procedures interfaced with domestic institutions including the Ministry of Commerce (India), the United States Department of Commerce, the European Commission, and national parliaments such as the Parliament of the United Kingdom and the Bundestag.
Implementation and Administration
Administration of the Protocol is centered at the World Intellectual Property Organization's International Bureau in Geneva. Operational practices involve coordination with national trademark offices such as the Japanese Patent Office, the United States Patent and Trademark Office, the Canadian Intellectual Property Office, the China National Intellectual Property Administration, the European Union Intellectual Property Office, the Russian Federal Service for Intellectual Property, and regional systems including the African Regional Intellectual Property Organization and the Benelux Office for Intellectual Property. Implementation required legislative or regulatory changes in many States, drawing on comparative law from jurisdictions including Germany, France, Japan, United States of America, Australia, New Zealand, Brazil, Chile, and South Korea. Dispute resolution sometimes referenced procedures under the World Trade Organization, the Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights, and national courts such as the Supreme Court of Canada.
Impact and Significance
The Protocol widened global access to the Madrid System, significantly affecting multinational brands from corporations like Coca-Cola Company, Procter & Gamble, Samsung Electronics, Toyota Motor Corporation, Sony Corporation, Volkswagen Group, Nestlé, L'Oréal, Unilever, Apple Inc., Microsoft, Google LLC, Amazon (company), and Facebook. It influenced national trademark practice across continents including Europe, Asia, Africa, Oceania, and the Americas, and intersected with international instruments such as the Paris Convention for the Protection of Industrial Property and the TRIPS Agreement. The Protocol catalyzed legal scholarship in journals published by institutions like Harvard University, Oxford University, Cambridge University, Stanford University, Yale University, and prompted comparative studies involving agencies such as the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development and the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development.
Amendments and Related Instruments
Over time, the Protocol has operated alongside related instruments including the Madrid Agreement Concerning the International Registration of Marks, administrative regulations adopted by WIPO, and national laws such as the Trademark Act (United States), statutes in Japan, Germany, France, United Kingdom, Australia, and model laws promoted by the World Intellectual Property Organization. Subsequent developments involved cooperation with the European Union Intellectual Property Office, revisions inspired by cases before the Court of Justice of the European Union, and dialogues with regional organizations like the African Union and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations regarding harmonization and accession strategies.