Act 8
Geographical Indications Act
2013
17. Prohibition of licence or assignment of geographical
indication or name of place of origin.
(1) The right to use a geographical indication shall not be subject
to licence or assignment.
(2) The owner of a registered geographical indication may
transfer the registration with that part of the business to which it
pertains, subject to the following conditions—
(a) the transfer shall be in writing and a request to transfer the
registration shall be filed with the registrar; and
(b) the transfer shall be reviewed in accordance with regulations
made under this Act to determine that all material
conditions remain unchanged except for the identity of the
entity producing the goods that are subject to the
registration; and where no differences are noted, the
transfer will be recorded and a corrected certificate issued,
and if not, the transfer will be refused, subject to the right of the new
owner of the business to file an original application to register the
geographical indication.
(3) The right to use the name of the place of origin of goods shall
not be subject to transfer, licence or assignment.
18. Prohibition of registration of exclusive geographical name as
a trademark.
(1) The registrar of trademarks shall refuse to register a mark that
consists exclusively of a geographical name unless the mark is determined
to be distinctive by the registrar of trademarks or by the court.
(2) The registration of a trademark for wines which contains or
consists of a geographical indication identifying wines, or of a
trademark for spirits which contains or consists of a geographical
indication identifying spirits, shall be refused or invalidated by the
registrar on the registrar’s motion or at the request of an interested
party with respect to the wines or spirits not having that origin.
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