Article 74, paragraph 1 b) gives the power to the trademark registration authority to refuse a trademark application if it contains a geographical indication: A mark shall not be registered as a trademark if it consists exclusively of signs or indications, which may serve in trade, to designate the kind, quality, quantity, intended purpose, value, geographical origin, or the time of production of the goods or of rendering the services, or other characteristics of the goods or services.

This kind of definition is given in Article 93, paragraphs 1, 2, 3 of the law: 1) The appellation of origin is used to mark the natural agricultural products, the industrial and handicrafts products. 2) The appellations of origin protect: a) geographical names of products, whose distinctive properties are mainly due to the location or region where they are produced, if such properties are a natural consequence of either the climate or soil or of established manufacturing procedures or processes; b) the name of a product which has become generally known through long term use in the course of trade as an indication that the product originates from a certain location or region. 3) Geographical names which have become generally known through long-term use in the course of trade as designations for certain kinds of products may not be protected by appellations of origin.

The link between the characteristics of an indication and its geographical origin is established by Article 93, paragraph 2 of the "Law on Industrial Property" (1994) and Articles 13 and 14 of the Law "Some changes and supplements to the Law on industrial property" (1999). According to these articles: The appellations of origin protect: a) geographical names of products, whose distinctive properties are mainly due to the location or region where they are produced, if such properties are a natural consequence of either the climate or soil or of established manufacturing procedures or processes; b) the name of a product which has become generally known through long term use in the course of trade as an indication that the product originates from a certain location or region. Persons not authorized to use an appellation of origin may not use such appellation even if they add the words "type", "style", "fashion", "produced as" or similar words. (Article 13) The protection of the appellation of origin shall be applicable against a geographical indication which, although literally true as to the territory, region or locality in which the goods originate, falsely represents to the public that the goods originate in another territory. (Article 14)

The Law on Industrial Property does not have any special provisions for additional protection granted to wines and spirits. Article 93.1 of this Law defines goods protected by appellation of origin as natural, agriculture, industrial and handicraft products. This also includes protection for wines and spirits. However, in the Law "On the viniculture, wine and other products deriving from grape" (Law No. 8443 dated 21 January 1999) and its regulation, both administrated by the Ministry of Agriculture and Food, there are well defined criteria concerning the denomination of controlled origin.

Exceptions like those foreseen in Article 24 of the TRIPS Agreement do not exist yet in Albanian legislation. Some of them will be provided for in new amendments in the near future. It is up to the Albanian Patent and Trademark Office to decide case by case during the examination procedure whether or not a name is generic.

In Article 39 of the Law it is stated: 1) For the purposes of the Law, "industrial design" (hereinafter referred to as "design") means the features of the appearance of a product which are not dictated solely by the technical function of the product and which confer to it a special appearance. The designs may be two or three dimensional or a combination of them. 2) a) In order to be protectable, an industrial design must be new and usable in industrial or handicraft products. b) An industrial design shall be considered to be new if it is not identical or closely similar to an industrial design which by publication or by public use has been made available to the public, anywhere in the world, before the filing date or, where priority is claimed, before the priority date of the application for the registration of the former design. c) Subparagraph 21 of this Article shall not apply in respect of any publication or public use which was made by the creator of the industrial design or his successor in title within a period of 12 months prior to the filing date of the application or, where priority is claimed, the priority date. Industrial designs are protected like other designs.

These rights are protected by Article 67 of the law, which reads: 1) The owner of the registered design shall have the right to prevent third parties from making, importing, offering to supply or distributing, or having in their possession for these purposes, any products that incorporate the registered design or closely similar design, when such acts are undertaken for commercial purposes. 2) Paragraph (1) of this Article shall not have effect in respect of mentioned products in that paragraph, which have been put on the market in the territory of the Republic of Albania, or in any territory specified in bilateral or multilateral agreement of the Republic of Albania. 3) The rights conferred by the registration shall not extend to equipment on ships, aircraft and any other vehicles not registered in the territory of the Republic of Albania, when these temporarily enter in the territory of the Republic of Albania, as well as the importation of spare parts and accessories for the purpose of repairing such vehicles and the execution of repairs on such vehicles.

Our legislation does not provide for the right to issue a compulsory licence for industrial designs. It provides licence contracts. Under Article 69 of the law: 1) For the purposes of this law, "licence contract" means any contract by which the owner of an registered design ("the licensor") gives to the other party ("the licensee") his agreement for that other party to do any of the acts referred to in Article 68(1) of this Law. 2) A licence contract shall be made in writing and shall be signed by the parties to the contract. Otherwise it shall not be valid. The fact that the contract has been concluded shall be recorded in the Register of industrial designs on payment of the prescribed fee. The licensee shall be entitled to institute any legal proceedings concerning the licence contract only if it has been recorded in the Register of industrial designs.

In Article 68 of the law it is stipulated: 1) The registration is made for 5 years counted from the filing date; 2) The registration may be renewed, on payment of the prescribed fee, for additional terms of five years each up to a total term of 15 years counted from the filing date.

According to Article 4 of the law: 1) An invention shall be considered novel if it does not form part of the prior art. For the determination of novelty, items of prior art may only be taken into account individually. 2) The prior art shall consist of everything which, before the filing date or, where priority is claimed, the priority date of the application claiming the invention (hereinafter priority date), has been made available to the public by means of publishing, use, demonstration or in any other way. 3) The prior art shall also include the content of any patent application as filed in, or with effect for, the Republic of Albania, to the extent that such application or the patent granted thereon is published subsequently, provided that the filing date or, where priority is claimed the priority date of such application is earlier than the date referred to in paragraph (2). According to Article 5 of the law: An invention shall be considered to involve an inventive step if, having regard to the prior art, it would not have been obvious to a person skilled in the art at the filing date or, where priority is claimed, the priority date of the application claiming the invention. According to Article 6 of the law: An invention shall be considered industrially applicable if it can be made or used in any kind of industry. Industry shall be understood in its broadest sense and shall cover any productive activities and services.

Exclusions from patentability are specified in Article 3, paragraphs 2-7 as follows: 2) The following, in particular, shall not be regarded as inventions within the meaning of paragraph (1): a) discoveries, scientific theories and mathematical methods; b) aesthetic creations; c) schemes, rules and methods for performing mental acts, playing games or doing business, and programs for computers; d) presentations of information. 3) The provisions of paragraph (2) shall exclude patentability of the subject-matter or activities referred to in that provision only to the extent to which a patent application or patent relates to such subject-matter or activities as such. 4) A patent shall not be granted in respect of an invention the publication or exploitation of which would be contrary to public order or morality. 5) No patents shall be granted for substances obtained through internal nuclear transformations for military purposes. 6) No patents shall be granted for inventions of surgical, diagnostic or therapeutical methods practised on the human or animal body, as they shall be regarded as inventions which are not susceptible of industrial application within the meaning of paragraph (1). This provision shall not apply to inventions relating to substances and devices for use in any of these methods. 7) No patents shall be granted in respect of plant or animal varieties or essentially biological processes for the production of plants or animals; this provision does not apply to microbiological processes or the products thereof.

Please see paragraph 4 of Article 3 (cited above). Until now, there are no cases applied in practice.

Yes, they are excluded. Please see paragraph 6 of Article 3 as cited above.

Yes, they are excluded. Please see paragraph 7 of Article 3 as cited above.

They are protected under the second part of paragraph 7, of Article 3 of the law (see above). We are preparing all the documents to ratify in the near future the Budapest Treaty for the protection of micro-organisms. The Ministry of Agriculture and Food has prepared a new law for the protection of new varieties of plants according to UPOV standards, which should enter into force probably by the end of this year.

In Article 27 of the law it is defined: 1) Where the patent concerns a product, the owner of the patent shall have the right to prevent third parties from performing, without his authorization, the following acts: a) the making of a product incorporating the protected invention; b) the offering or the putting on the market of a product incorporating the protected invention, the using of such a product, or the importing or stocking of such a product for such offering or putting on the market; c) the inducing of other parties to perform any of the above acts. 2) Where the patent concerns a process, the owner of the patent shall have the right to prevent third parties from performing, without his authorization, the following acts: a) the using of a process which is the subject matter of the patent; b) in respect of any product directly obtained by such process, any of the acts referred to in paragraph (1)(b), even where a patent cannot be obtained for the said product; c) the inducing of other parties to perform any of the above acts.

Yes. It is according to Article 3, paragraph 1 of the law which states: "In order to be patentable, an invention shall be novel, shall involve an inventive step and shall be industrially applicable." Whereas Article 6 underlines: "An invention shall be considered industrially applicable if it can be made or used in any kind of industry. Industry shall be understood in its broadest sense and shall cover any productive activities and services."

According to Article 27, paragraph 2 of the law: Where the patent concerns a process, the owner of the patent shall have the right to prevent third parties from performing, without his authorization, the following acts: a) the using of a process which is the subject matter of the patent; b) in respect of any product directly obtained by such process, any of the acts referred to in paragraph (1)(b), even where a patent cannot be obtained for the said product; c) the inducing of other parties to perform any of the above acts.

Paragraph 1 of Article 13 of the law states: a) The application shall disclose the invention in a manner sufficiently clear and complete for the invention to be carried out by a person skilled in the art. b) Where the application refers to biologically reproducible material which cannot be disclosed in the application in such a way as to enable the invention to be carried out by a person skilled in the art and such material is not available to the public, the application shall be supplemented by a deposit of such material with a recognized depositary institution.

Article 27, paragraph 3 of the law states: The owner of a patent shall have no right to prevent third parties from performing, without his authorization, the acts referred to in paragraphs (1) and (2) (cited above) in the following circumstances: a) where the act concerns a product covered by the patent after it has been put on the market by the owner of the patent, or with his express consent, in the Republic of Albania or in any territory specified in the bilateral or multilateral agreements which have been acceded to by Republic of Albania; b) where the act is done privately and for non-commercial purposes, provided that it does not significantly prejudice the economic interests of the owner of the patent; c) where the act is done for purely experimental purposes or for scientific research; d) where the act consists of the extemporaneous preparation for individual cases, in a pharmacy or by a medical doctor, of a medicine in accordance with a medical prescription or acts concerning the medicine so prepared.