Our Partner and Head of the IP Unit of the Firm was one of the invited panelists in the IP AND SPORTS – REACH FOR GOLD event organized by the Embassy of the United States in Ecuador, on the occasion of the World Intellectual Property Day.
Alfonso Rivera’s lecture addressed the issue of “Broadcasting of Sporting Events: the violation of rights on the Internet. Challenges to fight it”.
As of December 9, 2016, a new Intellectual Property system is in force in Ecuador. The Organic Social Economy of Knowledge, Creativity and Innovation Code, hereinafter the “Code”, was published in the Official Gazette on said day, which also governs a series of other matters, replacing the Intellectual Property Law of 1998.
The Executive Branch has a deadline of 180 days to issue the General Regulation to this Code.
Our Firm previously made an observation regarding some concerns in the Code related to its content and grounds, especially with regards to intellectual property, which still remains. Nevertheless, the Code expressly acknowledges the term and supremacy of international treaties signed and ratified by Ecuador in relation to intellectual property.
The issues that modify the previous system in effect and that could be a concern or matter of interest for owners of intellectual property rights in Ecuador are included in the following link:
To read the attachments download the material .. !!
By ZVS Tobar in Featured , INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY AND ANTI-PIRACY , News and Bulletins
We are proud to share with you that our Intellectual Property and Anti-Piracy Unit has been honored this year too with recognitions in the following important international publications:
– LEADERS LEAGUE: Plant Varieties’ Protection, 2017 Ranking of the Best Law Firms in Ecuador – TMT, Trademark Prosecution.
– LEGAL500: The ‘highly qualified’ team at TOBAR ZVS SPINGARN specializes in trade mark registration and enforcement matters for both domestic and international clients…” “Clients recommend Alfonso Rivera Canales, who heads the practice”.
In addition, in the prestigious publicationCHAMBERS LATIN AMERICA, 2018,our Firm is ranked among the best in this specialty and make the following comment regarding the Head of the Unit: The “very valuable” Alfonso Rivera of Tobar ZVS Spingarn is endorsed by clients as “a diligent and excellent lawyer who has an international insight and understands the client’s needs.” They add: “He stays in close contact and is quick to respond.”
These rankings commit us to keep doing our best effort to offer the highest quality service to our clients.
We are the best option to meet your IP requirements!
By Rivera Alfonso in Featured , INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY AND ANTI-PIRACY , News and Bulletins
The President of Ecuador issued Decree Nr. 356 in April 3, 2018, creating the NATIONAL SERVICE OF INTELLECTUAL RIGHTS (“SENADI”) as a technical entity attached to the Secretary of Higher Education, Science and Innovation. This entity will replace the Ecuadorian Institute of Intellectual Property (“IEPI”) created In 1998.
The SENADI is the local authority competent in all matters related to intellectual property, and will take over the regulation, management and control of the Intellectual Property rights pursuant to the Organic Code of the Social Economy of Knowledge, Creativity and Innovation and other regulations of legal order.
It will provide services for the acquisition and exercise of the intellectual property, as well as the protection of traditional knowledge.
FUNCTIONS
Among its responsibilities are the following functions:
1. To protect and defend intellectual rights, to organize and manage the information about the registration of all kinds of intellectual property rights.
2. To conduct the procedures and to resolve about the granting or refusal of the registration of industrial property rights for patents, utility models, industrial designs, trademarks, slogans, commercial names, trade dresses, geographical indications, and others.
3. To conduct the procedures for the granting and registration of the rights over new plant breeders’ rights and to manage the deposit of live samples.
4. To guaranty, within the range of its competence, the acquisition and exercising of the intellectual property rights.
5. To make use of its faculties of regulation by means of issuance of technical regulations in this field, management and control of the intellectual rights and traditional knowledge.
6. To make, ex-officio or upon request of a party, inspections, monitoring and punishment functions.
7. To process and resolve the oppositions that are filed in connection with the registration of intellectual property rights.
8. To set the official fees and charges for the services rendered by the entity responsible for the management of intellectual property rights and the traditional knowledge.
Organization:
The General Director will represent the entity. The head of the Secretary of Higher Education, Science, Technology and Innovation will appoint him. The Committee of this attached entity of Intellectual Rights will be made of by at least six members. The IEPI Director (a. i.) shall continue in charge of the institution until the new authority is appointed. All the IEPI employees with appointments will become part of the SENADI.
General Provision:
All the rest of competences, attributions, functions, among others, that were of the competence of the Ecuadorian Institute of Intellectual Property (IEPI) as of this date shall be undertaken by the SENADI.
Transitory Provisions:
The organic structure of the IEPI will continue in force until the new organic structure of the SENAI is approved.
Final Provision:
The corresponding institutions shall comply with the provisions in this Decree within a 180 days’ term.
By Rivera Alfonso in Featured , INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY AND ANTI-PIRACY , News and Bulletins
With a Resolution in the Official Registry of September 13, 2018 were issued the Regulations of the Coercive Procedure of the National Intellectual Rights’ Services – NIRS (SENADI in Spanish), under the following considerations:
The Regulations establishes a framework for the exercise of the coercive capacity for the collection and recovery of amounts contained in economic obligations resulting in its favor, usually for unpaid fees or fines.
It is applicable for those who develop activities related with intellectual property that may have pending economic obligations in favor of the NIRS.
The coercive proceeding is started base don a collection order issued by the competent authority, which has the implicit faculty to proceed to the coercive exercise.
From the notification of the collection order, the coercive proceeding may only be suspended if the obligation had been paid, if payment facilities had been granted or by court order.
Interests and surcharges in the obligations will calculated based on the highest annual interest rate allowed by the Central Bank as of the date of liquidation of the obligation. The interest will be effective from the following day from the issuance of the collection order. The filing of administrative action shall not suspend the generation of interests of the obligation.
The authority issuing the collection order will be able to grant payment facilities, upon the request of the debtor.
o The request of payment facilities shall contain the offer to immediately pay at least 20% of the total obligation, the way that the balance will be paid and indicate the guaranty for the outstanding balance
o Payment facilities may be agreed to only before the auction stage of the assets seized.
• The notice with the collection order will be personally served to the debtor. When it should not be possible to personally notify, it will be made with two written notices delivered at the latest domicile address indicated by the debtor.
• The notices of the proceeding will be informed to the coerced debtor by e-mail, to the domicile and/or digital legal POBox indicated in the administrative proceeding that generated the obligation..
• The executive body shall issue the immediate payment order including precautionary measures and shall order to each of the obligors to pay or deliver goods within a three (3) days’ term from the following day of the notification.
• Within the precautionary measures, the executive body will be able to order to withhold funds or deposits that the obligor has in the financial system or the seizure of its assets.
• Coercive proceedings with payment orders issued before the entering into effect of the Regulations shall be processed pursuant to the stipulations therein, provided that are the most favorable for the obligor and shall facilitate the collection of dues.
• In proceedings with payment orders issued before the entering into effect of the Regulations the due date for the voluntary payment shall be verified.
By ZVS Tobar in INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY AND ANTI-PIRACY , News and Bulletins
