Estados Unidos de América

Francia

Marcas de fábrica o de comercio

6. Article L 714-5 of the French Intellectual Property Code permits the proprietor of a trademark to present "good reasons" for continued registration despite non-use of a trademark. Please explain the types of circumstances that would be sufficient to satisfy this provision, including, where relevant, results of administrative or judicial decisions addressing this issue.

Article 19.1 of the TRIPS Agreement provides that: "If use is required to maintain a registration, the registration may be cancelled only after an uninterrupted period of at least three years of non-use, unless valid reasons based on the existence of obstacles to such use are shown by the trademark owner. Circumstances arising independently of the will of the owner of the trademark which constitute an obstacle to the use of the trademark, such as import restrictions on or other government requirements for goods or services protected by the trademark, shall be recognized as valid reasons for non-use." Conversely, Article L 714-5 of the Intellectual Property Code permits the owner of a trademark to avoid forfeiture of the trademark for non-use during a period of five years by invoking good reasons, i.e. a de jure or de facto obstacle which cannot be attributed to the owner's fault or negligence. The following excuses are recognized as legitimate: -major difficulties in procuring raw materials; -time-period required in order to obtain authorization to place the product on the market.