A propos de Gide
Fondé à Paris en 1920, Gide est l’un des principaux cabinets d’avocats internationaux.
International
Gide intervient dans de nombreux pays et est implanté dans six régions du monde, avec 11 bureaux.
Fondé à Paris en 1920, Gide est l’un des principaux cabinets d’avocats internationaux.
Gide intervient dans de nombreux pays et est implanté dans six régions du monde, avec 11 bureaux.
11 January 2017
Client Alert | Turkey | Intellectual Property
In a decision numbered 2016/189 K. published in the Official Gazette dated 6 January 2017, the Constitutional Court cancelled Article 14 of the Decree-Law No. 556 on the Protection of Trademarks.
According to Article 14, if, within a period of five years following the registration, the trademark has not been put to use without a justifiable/legitimate reason or if the use has been suspended for an uninterrupted period of five years, the trademark shall be cancelled on grounds of non-use.
Within the decision, the Constitutional Court has stated that trademark rights are property rights, and according to Article 91/1 of the Turkish Constitution, the Council of Ministers is entitled to issue decrees having the force of law. However, such Decree-Laws cannot regulate fundamental rights such as property rights, among others, except during martial law and states of emergency. Therefore, since the Decree-Law No. 556 limits trademark rights, which are considered as individual property rights, Article 14, which was challenged before the Constitutional Court, was considered to be contrary to Article 91/1 of the Turkish Constitution.
The Constitutional Court therefore cancelled Article 14 of the Decree-Law based on Article 91 of Turkish Constitution, and did not conduct further examination on the subject matter.
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