Seminar on Industrial Property Protective Legislation in Arab Countries organized by the Arab Society for Protection of Industrial Property in conjunction with the Qatari Chamber of Commerce
 
 
In the name of God, Most Gracious, Most Merciful
 
Introduction
 
Initiatives on industrial property rights during the Middle Ages began to appear in the shape of the legality of trade relations that a producer would adopt to symbolize his skill and distinguish his products from those of his competitors. At the start of the 15th century, these rights appeared under the protection of inventions in the shadow of the Venitian law issued in 1474.
 
These rights have an economic, political and military importance attached to them, as the transfer of technology to developing countries leads to its conversion in the aforementioned aspects. This is because inventions that appeared in old civilizations changed the course of history. The discovery of writing, paper and print, in addition to the innovations in methods of transportation whether by sea, land or eventually air, through ships, trains and aircraft, and the discovery of power generation, all led to consecutive revolutions that affected the progress of humanity.
 
There is no doubt that the emergence of innovations leads to the development of economic vitality, as production increases and improves, which raises the level of lifestyle. Also, the production increase necessitates the expansion of markets to distribute related goods, so external trade flourishes in addition to the advancement of political ideas and the control of the major industrial nations over smaller ones in order to utilize them as markets for their products.
 
Needless to say that Europe benefited in its’ industrial upheaval from the inventions and discoveries that Arabs presented between the 6th and 16th centuries. After that the technological revolution in Europe, America and Japan took place, but this led to an economic uprising in the fields of industry, trade and agriculture, which necessitated a legal shake-up to follow.
 
It has become clear to us that the technological revolution was followed by an economic one, which led to new economic interests that were in need of organizing. This demanded issuing legislation within which economic rights of a new nature came to light, namely industrial property rights.
 
 
The Importance of Industrial Property Protection in the Arab Countries:
 
Industrial and consumer markets in the Arab nations witnessed a unique development as a result of the change in the global economy which was triggered by the increase in oil prices after 1974. Consequently, liquidity in global financial markets was transferred to the members of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC).
  
This sudden change attracted numerous companies and industrialists worldwide to an intense discussion in the hopes of getting a share of the market, which led to establishing markets where the famous brand/name of a certain product could make all the difference in marketing it and giving the owner of that product priority in the marketplace.
 
Therefore, the owners of goods stand to lose greatly if they do not exercise their right of being the first to register (their products), or would have to continuously protect their property by registering it. Due to this,,interest in industrial property protection has developed, which was represented in the foundation of numerous bodies and international organizations such as the International Association for the Protection of Industrial Property, the International Federation of Industrial Property Attorneys and the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO). Also, numerous Arab establishments were created such as branches of the Arab Society for the Protection of Industrial Property in Jordan, Egypt and Lebanon. The Arab Society for Industrial Protection was founded in February 1987 to achieve the following objectives:
 
1.      Reinforce awareness on the necessity of protecting industrial property in the Arab region by encouraging governments to develop laws that control this activity such as trademarks, patents and laws protective of intellectual activity, discoveries and innovations.
2.      Reinforce awareness on the necessity of protecting those involved in the Arab region and unifying Arab pieces of legislation in this discipline, and to develop charters that are consistent with the 1883 Paris Convention and what charters followed in the realm of industrial property protection.
3.      Promote knowledge and awareness on protection through specialized media, conferences, seminars, research and studies for the purpose of protecting both the consumer and producer.
4.      Organize this profession, revitalize it and promote its stature for the service of its members and both regional and international communities, in addition to training Arab cadres in the field of industrial property.
  
In order for these Arab and international bodies and institutions to do their jobs, it is essential that laws and regulations related to trademarks, patents, designs and industrial models be developed, in addition to intellectual property laws and those related to copyrights and protection from unfair competition. These laws in their entirety represent the complete basis for the achievement of the objectives of these organizations. 
 
Review of Current Industrial Property Protective Legislation in the Arab Nations:
 
Trademark and patent regulations that facilitate protection at registration exist in most Arab countries including:
Kuwait, Lebanon, Jordan, Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, UAE (Ras Al-Khaimah), Qatar, The Democratic Republic of Yemen (Southern Yemen), The Arab Republic of Yemen (Northern Yemen), Egypt, Algeria, Iraq, Libya, Morocco, Somalia, Sudan, Syria, Tunisia, Mauritania, Oman and Djibouti.
 
As for the prerequisites to register a trademark, they vary from one Arab country to the other. Whereas some Arab countries only require an agency, others require a copy of the trademark registration in their country or abroad, or a copy of the company’s registration in addition to the request for an agency.
 
The same applies to registering patents. The Arab countries that have patent laws are:
Kuwait, Lebanon, Jordan, Bahrain, The Democratic Republic of Yemen (Southern Yemen), Egypt, Algeria, Iraq, Libya, Morocco, Somalia, Sudan, Syria, Tunisia, Mauritania, Saudi Arabia and recently Northern Yemen.
 
In Arab countries where trademark/patent laws do not exist, the only way to protect industrial property is through the advertisement of cautionary notices in local publications. Cautionary notices define the interests of the trademark owner for his/her trademark that is publicized, and informs the public about the owner and warns them about any potential misuse of the mark. With the absence of trademark & patent laws where an official registration can be obtained, the cautionary notice is considered the only method of providing and supporting evidence in the case of a legal dispute. Therefore advertising these notices in both Arabic and English languages provides the maximum protection in countries where these protective laws do not exist. Cautionary notices are ineffective when it comes to such issues as registration, and are usually not filed or stored by any governmental department. Accordingly, it is advisable to re-advertise time and again, since in doing so reminds the public of the (owner’s) rights and also warns against misuse for those who didn’t see the first ad.
There is no law that specifies a period in which the notice must be re-advertised, but it is advisable to do so once every two years, and this of course is up to the discretion of the mark’s owner.
Below is the list of countries where advertising a cautionary notice is considered the only method of protecting industrial property:
 
UAE (Dubai, Abu-Dhabi, Sharjah, Ajman, Al-Fujairah, Um Al-Quwein, Ras Al- Khaimah. Also, cautionary notices are only related to patents in Ras Al- Khaimah), Sultanate of Oman, Qatar (related to patents only), and the Arab Republic of Yemen (for patents).

As for service mark regulations, service mark application forms are accepted in the following Arab countries:
Algeria, Bahrain, Egypt, Lebanon, Libya, Morocco, Mauritania, Qatar, Ras Al- Khaimah (UAE), Saudi Arabia, Sudan, Syria, Tunisia, the Arab Republic of Yemen (Northern Yemen), The Democratic Republic of Yemen (Southern Yemen), Djibouti, Oman and Somalia.

In relation to intellectual property, numerous Arab countries obtained membership in the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) which are:
Jordan, UAE, Tunisia, Algeria, Libya, Sudan, Qatar, Egypt, Morocco, Saudi Arabia, the Arab Republic of Yemen (Northern Yemen), Lebanon, Somalia and Mauritania.

The Arab nations that signed the Paris Convention are:
Algeria, Egypt, Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon, Libya, Mauritania, Morocco, Tunisia, Syria and Sudan.

The following countries deal with laws related to designs and industrial models:
Libya, Egypt, Iraq, Kuwait, Tunisia, Sudan, Syria, Morocco, Jordan, Bahrain, Lebanon, Northern Yemen, Algeria, Somali and Mauritania. However, Qatar, UAE (Ras Al- Khaimah), Saudi Arabia and Oman deal primarily with cautionary notices as there are no laws related to designs and industrial models in these states. 
 
Most Arab nations follow the international categorization of goods and services, with the exception of Iraq, where there is a local categorization. Some Arab countries accept applications for the registration of alcoholic beverage trademarks, whereas others do not such as Saudi Arabia and Kuwait. In Saudi Arabia, Class 33 was deleted for example, as was done in Ras Al-Khaimah in the UAE. Libya also suspended registration of alcoholic beverages without revising (the class) or officially deleting it.
 
As for the boycott of Israel, numerous procedures have taken place that effectively prevent normal people and institutions to deal directly or indirectly with people or companies that are either headquartered in Israel, carry Israeli citizenship or work for Israel’s benefit inside or outside Israel. These preventive procedures apply to numerous aspects of industrial property including registration of patents and trademarks or industrial designs, and other procedures that are also related to registration renewal or waivers of properties and licenses. For the purpose of supporting this Israeli boycott, a law with various aspects was issued in this regard, and an Israeli boycott office was established to implement these procedures through the office’s branches in various Arab countries.
 
 
Legislation in Arab Nations by Category:
 
When it comes to the treatment and dealing with industrial property protection, Arab states can be divided into three categories:
 
A- First Category: Nations that had protective legislation in place prior to 1960, the majority of which were primarily still under foreign colonial control such as Egypt in 1949, Morocco in 1916, Lebanon and Syria in 1946, Jordan in 1953, Tunisia in 1888 and Southern Yemen in 1939. Therefore, the pieces of legislation here follow the patterns of legislation prevalent in those colonial states, and did not account for the nationalistic needs of the peoples of those countries. Accordingly, the deficiencies of these pieces of legislation in achieving their objectives are apparent.
 
B- Second Category: Nations that issued legislation for the protection of industrial property after gaining independence, such as Kuwait, Algeria, Iraq and Sudan. This legislation extracted its rules from the model law for protecting innovations put in place by the International Association for the Protection of Intellectual Property.
 
C- Third Category: Those countries that put industrial property protective legislation in place such as the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia that issued a system for protecting innovations in 1989.  
 
Arab Countries’ Legislation for Protection of Innovations

1. Egyptian Legislation
 
Egyptian legislature issued a law to protect innovations, designs and industrial models, which was law # 132 for the year 1949. When this law was issued, the legislature had utilized - in some of its rulings - the French law on inventions issued in 1844, although France itself revised its law in this regard. Many Arab countries emulated and extracted from the Egyptian law in their pieces of legislation.
 
The fact that there was not a clear definition for what type of innovation requires protection resulted in a conflict between jurisprudence and judicial laws in establishing this definition. The Egyptian legislature considered the concept of relative novelty in time and place, as well as considering the patent as the single means of protection.
 
As for patents, the Egyptian legislature did not organize contracts such as the voluntary licensing contract, but rather organized one format only which was mandatory licensing to prevent exploitation during the three years from date of awarding the patent. Further, this was systemized such that it was with the condition of the non-existence of legitimate excuses by the patent owner for delaying exploitation. With that, the Egyptian legislature had followed the traditional thought that was prevalent in the systems of patents during the 19th century, considering these patents as a property right that is not suitable anymore with the recent developments in patent systems.
 
2. Southern Yemen Legislation issued in 1939 and Libyan Legislation issued in 1956, & the Kuwaiti Legislation issued in 1926, the Jordanian in 1953 and the Iraqi # 65 of 1970
 
These pieces of legislation did not deviate from the pattern of the Egyptian law # 132 issued in 1949, as they all consider a preliminary examination only when filing protection forms and do not conduct any objective examination to investigate the novelty of the invention, and a patent is issued by merely publication and distribution.
 
3. The Sudanese Law for Protection of Inventions issued in 1971:
The Sudanese law for the protection of inventions is not unique in issuing any new or revised rulings although it was released in 1971.
The truth of the matter is that the Sudanese legislature gleaned its rulings from the model law put in place by the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO). However what transpired during application was different because Article 17 of the law included text that effectively awards the patent with only a preliminary examination of the request, without requiring an objective examination to confirm its novelty and originality.
 
 
4. The Jordanian Law for Protection of Inventions issued in 1953:
The law is entitled the "Inventions and Designs Privileges Law." Here a patent is awarded and it is called the inventions privilege. In accordance with this law’s rulings, the patent is awarded by merely handing the request in with a preliminary review/evaluation of its contents, and without addressing its details. Although this is the case, the patents registrar is allowed to require the requester to forward appropriate images of the invention or samples or models, particularly if it was chemically-related. The registrar can ask for this either when the request is forwarded or at any time before the acceptance of the request and awarding the patent privilege which has a duration of 16 years from the date of submission of the request.
 
5. The Kuwaiti Law #4 for Inventions issued in 1962:
This law is concerned with the protection of inventions, designs and industrial models. As for trademarks, they are organized by the Kuwaiti legislature according to trade law No. 68 for the year 1980. Patents themselves are not granted in Kuwait, but rather patent applications are forwarded and then kept at the Kuwaiti Patent Office. These filed documents are considered a reference where their contents and dates can be used in the case of any dispute over the ownership of a patent or its details, which usually ends up in court where a committee is appointed to prepare a report on the matter.
 
Overall, the Kuwaiti legislation here is the same as the Egyptian law No. 132 for the year 1949, and so the same criticisms of this legislation can be directed at the Egyptian law.
 
6. The Algerian Law for the Protection of Inventions issued in 1969:
The Algerian legislature was inspired in issuing its rulings by the model law for the protection of inventions issued in 1965, and although it uses the inventor’s patent/certificate (i.e. letter of patent) and what is known as a utility model in place of the patent as documentation for protecting the inventions, this is primarily due to the philosophy of the system/regime and its socialist tendency. This philosophy considers that the patent is not to be monopolized but rather has the right of its source which is essentially the community.
 
Therefore, the inventor or innovator must not exploit his/her invention for his/herself, because this right (of utilizing this invention) is for the state, and in return the state will grant the innovator certain privileges. In this aspect, the Algerian legislation is consistent with those of socialist countries such as the Soviet Union, Hungary and (East) Germany for example.
Although the Algerian legislation is relatively new, its rulings does not include   an objective evaluation of innovators’ licensing applications, as the license is granted without a previous review of the content involved, and this is similar to pieces of legislation throughout other developing countries.       
 
7. Kingdom of Saudi Arabia Law:
Saudi legislation for patents is considered one of the modern pieces of legislation for protection of innovations in the Arab countries, and was issued based on the royal decree No. M/38 dated January 18, 1989. The Saudi legislature derived the regulations of their system from the model legislation for innovations’ protection prepared by the Industrial Development Center for Arab States (IDCAS), in conjunction with the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO).
The Saudi legislature also organized the rights and obligations of the patent owner, and subjected him/her to a series of contracts for the purpose of urging him/her to take advantage of his or her innovation. In any case, the Saudi legislation is considered quite special among the pieces of legislation of the Arab countries, although it does have certain drawbacks.  
 
8. The Bahraini Law for Protecting Inventions:
It is called the Code of Industrial Privileges and Designs and Trademarks for the year 1955 and revised with the law of 1977. The duration of the privilege is 15 years, and is granted without examination and without any third party objection; so essentially with the mere storage of the patent request. Therefore, the Bahraini law is similar to that of the legislation in other Arab nations where there is no explicit text that demands the objective in-depth examination of the invention, and the privilege is granted by merely forwarding the request, thereby creating a monopoly for the requester by simply submitting the registration form.
 
9. Tunisian Law for Protecting Inventions:
Tunisian law does not violate the provisions of French legislation for inventions issued in 1844 which was amended by France more than once, until a law was issued in 1968. Therefore, the provisions of the Tunisian law as it stands seem to be traditional, as patents are granted for a period of fifteen years after the payment of appropriate fees. After an application is forwarded, this period may be extended for another five years. Accordingly, the innovation claim (i.e. patent) is granted without prior examination and by merely submitting the application.
10. Syrian Law for Protection of Innovations:
Syrian legislation dates back to 1946 and a patent is granted once the application is forwarded and a preliminary examination of its attachment is conducted. The Syrian law is similar to that of the 1844 French law on inventions.. The patent duration is fifteen years, commencing from the date of deposit/registration, and is renewable by payment of fees that increase yearly.
 
11. Lebanese Law for Inventions issued in 1924:
Regulations of the Lebanese law on patents do not differ from those in other Arab countries. Here also, a patent is granted by merely applying and preliminary evaluation conducted. Patent duration is 15 years, commencing from the date of application.
 
12. Iraqi Law for Protection of Inventions issued in 1970:
Despite the modernity of Iraqi legislation, its provisions are traditional, and there is a serious inclination to examine the requests in detail, with the examiner asking many questions of the inventor, with the expectation of fully convincing responses. Iraqi legislature considers the principle of relative novelty concerning time and place quite seriously, such that a patent could not have been applied for, for the same innovation, during the 50 years preceding the submission of the patent application in Iraq. Iraqi legislature organizes the inventions of workers that materialize on the job and in the scope of work. In this regard this legislation is consistent with the Egyptian law for inventions, and aforementioned inventions are registered in the name of the employer with the condition that the innovator’s name is mentioned in the patent. In Iraqi legislation, patent duration is fifteen years from the date of application and is renewable annually with the payment of applicable fees.
13. Libyan Law for Protection of Inventions issued in 1961:
This legislation does not differ from the Egyptian law, with similar criticisms leveled at it. The patent is granted for a period of fifteen years and occurs with only a preliminary examination to the details of the request and is renewed annually with the payment of dues. Libyan legislature regulates compulsory licenses that allows the state to exercise its rights in exploiting the invention as it sees fit. To date though, no compulsory license has been issued.
 
.14. Moroccan Law for Protection of Innovations issued in 1961:
The Moroccan legislature organizes patents, designs, industrial models, trademarks, trade names and unfair competition in one piece of legislation. There is special legislation to regulate industrial property in the city of Tangiers that has no connection with the legislation of 1961 which is a strange condition and one that we are hopeful will be rectified by the Moroccan legislature. The Moroccan legislation was influenced by the French law issued on July 5, 1844. Patent is granted by preliminary examination without exposure to the theme.
15. Southern Yemen Law:
As far as patents and the rights to utilize them goes, it is very similar to the Algerian law, namely it refers back to the philosophy of the political system and its socialist tendency. 
 
Pieces of Legislation for Trademarks in Arab Countries
 
1. Egyptian Law for Trademarks issued in 1939:
This law precedes the patent law. A trademark is granted to the person who registered it, as registration necessarily accompanies trademark ownership, unless the person has used the brand/mark for a period of five years prior to the registration on a continuous basis without interference/dispute from any party and without a lawsuit brought against him/her or a court ruling against him/her declaring non-entitlement to the mark.
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                         To register the mark, it must have a distinctive characteristic. The registration request must be submitted to the Department for Registration of Trademarks in the Ministry of Supply and Internal Trade, and should include one or more category of products identified by the executive statute.                                                                                  
If the Department for Registration of Trademarks rejects the application for registering the mark, this decision may be appealed within thirty days from the date of notifying the applicant of the rejection. If the application was rejected due to the similarity of the mark with one already registered for a specific category, then applicant’s mark can only be registered with a court order issued against the registrant.
Once a mark is accepted, it can be advertised by publicizing it in the Official Gazette for three consecutive editions. The person involved (i.e. original registrant) may oppose the registration of a mark within thirty days of the date of publication. In doing so, he/she must show the reasons for opposition. Also, the registration applicant must respond appropriately to the said department, or otherwise will be considered as waiving his/her application. The judgment related to the opposition is issued by the Dept. of Registration, and this judgment can be appealed before the civil courts during the time specified by the executive statute.  
2. Sudanese Legislation for the Protection of Trademarks issued in 1969:
Sudan has an independent law for the protection of patents issued in 1971, and another for industrial designs issued in 1972. However, there is no legislation for the protection of what are known as utility models, source indications, appellations of origin, unfair competition and workers’ inventions.
 
3. Legislation on Trademark Protection in other Arab Countries:
In other Arab countries, there is a legislation to protect trademarks such as the law in Qatar issued in 1978, Libya in 1956 and Southern Yemen in 1939, which has annual bulletins issued either with or without modifications. There is also the law of the Syrian Arab Republic issued in 1946, where registration of national marks is compulsory without amending the text and spirit of the law in particular. Other laws are those in the Sultanate of Oman from the year 1987, the Ras-Al-Khaimah issued in 1974 and amended in 1984, the Northern Yemen law of 1976, Algeria’s law of 1966, Saudi Arabia and Tunisia’s laws issued in 1889 and amended in 1957, Jordan’s of 1952, Lebanon’s of 1924 and Bahrain’s of 1955 and amended in 1977.
The Saudi law for trademarks issued by the royal decree No. 57 on January 17, 1984 is considered the latest of such legislation. The Saudi legislature has derived the regulations on this law from the model put in place for Arab countries by the Industrial Development Center for Arab States in 1975. The Saudi trademark system defines trademarks, and the methods for their registration, publication, renewal, cancellation, transfer of ownership, licensing for use and specification of crimes that are considered a violation of a mark’s ownership.
The main feature of the Saudi trademark legislation which distinguishes from corresponding legislation in other Arab countries is that it organized the collective or certification marks which are used by several economic projects that deal with a certain type of product, and which are associated with a federation or organization or public institution striving to achieve the common interests of these projects. It also systemized the contracts for relinquishing exploitation of marks, and all these provisions weren’t adequately organized by the rest of protective legislation in Arab countries.
Designs and Industrial Models Legislation in the Arab Countries:                                                             1.Sudan and Southern Yemen: They assigned separate legislation for designs & industrial models.                                                                                                                                                   2. Egypt, Libya, Iraq, Kuwait, and Tunisia: They brought together the legislation of patents, designs and industrial models. But as far as Egypt and Libya are concerned, the designs & industrial models are registered in the Office of Trademarks and not the Patent Office.                                                                                                                          3. Syria, Morocco, Jordan: The combined all elements of industrial property in one piece of legislation.                                                                                                               4. As for the rest of the Arab countries, they make up for the absence of a special law for designs and industrial models with publishing of cautionary notices.
The Homogeneity of Protection Laws in the Arab countries:
1. If we take into account that the Arab countries are divided into three groups in terms of their legislation for the protection of industrial property:

A- The Arab countries that legislated protection of industrial property during the phase of colonialism.
B- States that issued protective legislation after independence.
C- States that issued protective legislation recently.
Then we realize that this situation has led to the lack of homogeneity of laws among the Arab states, because each state was affected by the timeframe when its legislation was drafted.
2. Some Arab countries have issued a separate legislation for the protection of trademarks, and another for the protection of patents, industrial models and designs as is the case in Libya, Egypt, Iraq, Kuwait, Jordan, Tunisia. While some states had earmarked separate legislation for the protection of each component of the industrial property like Sudan and Southern Yemen and even the component of copyrights, some countries combine all the elements of industrial property in one piece of legislation, like Syria and Morocco, which clearly indicates the differences in protection laws.

3. Some Arab countries have an interest in protecting the rights of authors, composers and producers, but the majority did not give this matter the attention it deserves.

4. Some legislation, as is the case in Algeria and due to its socialist orientation, consider that a patent shouldn’t be a monopoly (for the owner or inventor), but is rather the right of the community. Accordingly, the inventor or innovator should not exploit his/her innovation to him/herself, and the prevailing idea is that the right of ownership belongs to the state in return for granting the inventor some advantages/privileges.

5. The legislation of certain countries takes up only a preliminary examination or inspection when the protection requests are deposited, and no objective examination to verify the novelty of the innovation is conducted. The patent is issued by publication as in Libya, Kuwait and Jordan, while other countries like Saudi Arabia consider the principle of novelty and previous substantive examination of the innovation prior to the granting of a patent.
From this it can be concluded that protective laws in Arab countries are not homogeneous in terms of drafting or content, even if there are many similarities between them which stems from the fact that some legislation is derived from legislation adopted by the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO). For this legislation to achieve its desired objectives, there should be a unified model Arabic law for industrial property in the Arab countries that serves as a constitution which organizes all aspects and activities of industrial property.

Observations on the existing legislation in the Arab Countries:
1. Some Arab countries issue a unique legislation to protect trademarks, and another for the protection of patents, industrial designs and models such as is the case with Egyptian, Libyan, Iraqi, Kuwaiti, Tunisian and Jordanian legislation. Others issue separate legislation for the protection of each component of industrial property, such as Sudanese & Southern Yemeni legislation. Some countries combine all the elements of industrial property in one piece of legislation such as Syrian and Moroccan legislation. This status does not serve the economic interests of the Arab countries as there has to be separate legislation governing each component of the industrial property which are patents, trademarks, designs, industrial models, unfair competition, tradenames, trade indicators and copyrights.

2. Most Arab countries do not have concerns in protecting the rights of authors, composers and producers despite of the importance of this protection to encourage creative talent and create a spirit of innovation and creativity among their youth and to protect all aspects of creativity in various forms. However, work will begin in this regard in each of Southern Yemen and Egypt during the current year.
3. Legislation in the Arab countries lacks organizing a competent authority to examine the technology transfer contracts to assess the contribution of imported technology in the economic development of the country, and periodically inspect these contracts.

4. Arab legislation lacks new types of patents such as patents of importation which are granted for innovations that have been distributed abroad but are unknown in Arab nations.

5. With regards to trademark laws in the Arab countries; a majority of them do not pay attention to regulating licensing, and most of these laws do not regulate collective marks, which are marks related to persons who control certain products or certain services or check them.

6. Legislation to protect industrial property elements in Arab countries, especially modern legislation such as the Saudi and Sudanese, does not differ significantly from those established in the developed countries, but such legislation has not achieved its purpose of fulfilling technological progress. Accordingly this legislation needs to be re-drafted commensurate with the needs of economic development in Arab countries.

7. Arab legislation in the field of industrial property is not homogeneous and is unable to achieve its objectives in advancing economic activity and fulfilling necessary technological development.
Legislative Studies: Proposed laws and legislation
Before the start of the review and analysis of the proposed laws and legislation, we want to thank Professor Dr. Abdul Rasul Abd al-Rida, Chairman of the Advisory Opinion and Legislation Department in the Council of Ministers in the State of Kuwait, for the valuable study of the proposed project on the distinctive marks in the United Arab Emirates and the project of (drafting the) Trademarks Model Law of the Gulf Cooperation Council.
A. Draft Law for Distinctive Marks in the United Arab Emirates:

1. The draft uses a new expression for the topics it addresses which it refers to as “distinctive marks,” and this new naming convention was consistent with what the draft law dealt with as far as organizing trademarks, industrial marks and services, but was contrary to the established names in the Arab states of "trademarks and industrial marks." So re-defining the term “distinctive marks” became necessary and clarifying its meaning in Article (2) for the terminology used.

2. One of the drawbacks of the law project is the inconsistency of its different sections. This is because it consists of 10 sections, and it is noted that the legislature devoted three sections to registration rights, procedures and impact (i.e. sections II, III and V). It would have been better if one section was devoted to the entire registration regulations, keeping in mind that section V of the law specializing in the registration’s impact involves a single article, which is Article (23).

3. Clarifications of the meaning of trademarks, industrial marks, service marks, collective marks and associated marks: The draft only used a general expression that many types, forms and symbols can fall under. It seems this may have been done, for example, to assist in preventing disputes on the specifics and assist the judiciary system.

4. It becomes clear from reviewing the draft that it had only organized trademark rights, without the rest of the types of industrial property rights such as patents, designs and industrial models.

5. The draft law contained no text which identified the persons who have the right to legally register a mark in the UAE, and it would have been more constructive if it did so specifically.

6. The draft law did not mention examples of forms and images of trademarks or industrial marks, but merely stated an all-inclusive sentence under which many different types of trademarks and industrial marks can be mentioned, unlike the Kuwaiti law for example, which cited some examples of trademarks forms and images.
7. The draft law indicates, under Paragraph (Z) of Article (2), the meaning of a service mark by stating that it is "every apparent symbol that is used or intended to be used to distinguish the services of one establishment from the next."

However the draft law, in Paragraph (T) of Article (2), addresses and clarifies the meaning of marks that are identical in their basic elements and merely differ in secondary elements or characteristics that do not affect their substance.
It is known both judiciously and by jurisprudence that colors themselves do not serve to distinguish products unless they are homogeneous and it is advisable not to mention color to distinguish products.
8. Article (3) of the draft law essentially states that the provisions of international treaties and regulations and the international bilateral or multilateral agreements which the United Arab Emirates is a part of, are considered a window of opportunity so to speak. There is no need for this text, as this is obvious and recognized in accordance with the provisions of international law and the provisions contained in these treaties, and the text itself is unnecessary.
9. The draft law - in Article (28) - violates the general rules related to evidence/proof in counter lawsuits where the burden of proof rests on the defendant such that the defendant continues to use the mark during the legally permissible period because it is easy for him/her to prove this. This however is almost impossible for the prosecution. Therefore, we do not see a need to violate this principle in relation to presenting evidence or proof.

10. Under the draft law, the judicial cancellation of a mark is due to the history of non-use, and this trend is consistent with the basis that a ruling in a counter lawsuit is clear but non-binding, as ownership of a trademark is acquired through usage and not through legal registration.

11. The draft law has a provision that if a lawsuit is brought before the criminal court in the event of infringement on a registered mark, and a dispute was raised in a criminal court on the ownership of the mark or its’ validity, then paragraph (2) of Article (389) states that the criminal court would defer judgment in the case and refer it to the civil court to determine the mark’s ownership. Therefore, what this draft law implies is inconsistent with this principle relevant to evidence in that matters should be deferred from civil courts to criminal courts and not the other way around.
B. Comments on the Model Draft Law for Trademarks for the GCC: 
1. The draft gleaned its provisions from the Model Law for Trademarks established by the World Intellectual Property Organization. The two are identical except in the form that the text was written in.

2. As for the definition of the trademark contained in Articles (1) and (2 )of the draft, it is consistent with the definition contained in Articles (61) and (62) of the Kuwaiti Trade Act, the basis of which is that a trademark is a material symbol placed by a producer on his/her products, or by a merchant on his/her goods, or by whoever forwards a certain service on the aspects of this service. This mark has the quality of distinguishing between said products and goods, and others that are similar, due to its form and clarity, and this clear wording is a feature that the model draft has which is considered advantageous when compared to the Kuwaiti draft.
The word “services,” in addition to products and goods, was added to the second article of the model draft, and this makes the text more comprehensive and inclusive for all that may be included in trade, since service now can be considered as the process of a commodity to be bought and sold. Also, the third paragraph has been added which refers to intellectual decals and symbols specific to the Arab region concerning marks that may not be used, and thereby avoids the use of these marks in trade.
3. Another advantage of the draft is that its third article states which people have the right to register their trademarks and this is not present in the Kuwaiti Trade Act for example.

4. In Article (5) of the draft, which corresponds to Article (65) of the Kuwaiti law, it is noted that the first paragraph stipulates that whoever registered the mark is considered its exclusive owner, unless the contrary is proved, while we find that the Kuwaiti law does not add the words "unless the contrary is proved."  This is broader and more comprehensive than the Kuwaiti law since whoever registers the mark is not necessarily the owner unless it is proven so.

5. The seventh article of the draft added a new provision that includes the impermissibility of the mark registration application to include more than one category, and this new provision does not exist in Kuwaiti law, and we suggest the text read as follows:
 “A trademark is registered for one or more classes of the goods or services for the executive code of this law, yet there can only be one class listed per application form.”
 
Additionally, the eighth article states the permissibility of using a single application for registering a group of marks identical in substance. There is no equivalent text to this in the Kuwaiti Trade Act.
 
6. Article (10), which matches Articles (69) and (70) of the Kuwaiti Trade Act added a new provision in its third paragraph that doesn’t exist in the Kuwaiti law, which is that the specialized authority must decide on the status of the registration application within thirty days if it meets the terms and conditions set forth in this law and its executive statute.
This new provision is better than what previously existed, as it forces the authoritative party to decide on completed applications within a certain timeframe, expediting the process such that involved stakeholders aren’t impaired or have their businesses disrupted, and this naturally is an advantage of the draft.

7. As far as appealing the authority’s decision in terms of duration which is discussed in the eleventh article of the draft, we see that it is better than in the Kuwaiti Trade Act in terms of the possibility of liquidating disputes before a committee before being presented to a court.
8. Paragraph (12) of the draft states that the deciding authority must advise the registration applicant within thirty days of any objections to his/her application. The Kuwaiti law does not specify any time limit. Therefore, this draft is superior in this regard, as the registrant can respond to the objection quickly and any dispute over the mark’s registration will not be prolonged.

9. The consolidated draft systemized what are known as collective marks, which are defined in Article (28). Article (29) of the draft defers to the regulations of the executive statute for clarifying the terms and conditions of registering collective marks. This benefit has no equivalent in the Kuwaiti Trade Act, since the state conditions and its free capitalist system permit a group of companies to merge under one company and utilize numerous marks.
10. In the penalties section, Article (32) of the model draft was emphasized, making the punishment in case of recidivism not more than twice the maximum penalty applied for the violation, with the closure of the business or project, for a period of not less than fifteen days and not more than six months with the publication of the ruling. This is another advantage of the draft as the more severe punishment in case of recidivism achieves, the purpose of deterring the violator forces him/her to re-think those criminal actions, thereby reducing the violations in this area.

11. The draft included conclusive provisions which is advantageous both practically and functionally.

12. The model draft is consistent with modern legislation in this regard.
 
 
C. The Sultanate of Oman: Applicable Study for Marks and Commercial Data:

 The Ministry of Trade and Industry of the Sultanate of Oman sent an official letter to the Arab Society for the Protection of Industrial Property requesting experts to do the following:

1. Develop systems, regulations and procedures for the registration of trademarks.
2. Determine the necessary records and information that must be included in those records, with the preparation of their own forms.
3. Identify the general principles for the acceptance or rejection of the registration of any trademark, whether domestic or foreign.
4. Define a general framework to deal with global companies in the light of the provisions of international treaties and conventions in this regard.
5. Train personnel in relevant departments on the above items.
6. Any other work required in the application of the said law.
D. Libya:

The Arab Society for the Protection of Industrial Property also received a memo from the Popular General Committee for Economy and Foreign Trade in Libya, that expressed its desire to revive the Trademark Office in Libya in such a fashion to keep up with the pace of development, whether this involves adequate training of human resources or providing sophisticated electronic devices.
The committee expressed the desire to receive from the society the necessary technical aid and legal advice to revitalize this office per modern scientific bases.
 
E. The Consolidated Model Law Draft for Industrial Property in the Arab States:

Given the foregoing legislation on the protection of industrial property in the Arab countries, it has become evident that it is necessary to reformulate this legislation in such a way that develops the discipline of industrial property protection, so that it can fulfill its required role in the progress of the Arab countries, technically and technologically.
In an attempt to develop industrial property protective legislation in the Arab countries, we recommend utilizing the consolidated model law for industrial property protection as developed by the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) in the developing countries as a guide, for the purpose of establishing a uniform law for the Arab countries.
Conclusion:
It has become necessary that Arab and private efforts focus on developing the industrial property protection profession in regards to its legislative aspects, so that this profession will fulfill its role in triggering a technical and technological jump for the Arab states individually and collectively. Without preparing for this new technological launch, the opportunities of the Arab world’s advancement will remain stagnant.
The Arab Society for the Protection of Industrial Property, which represents the comprehensive Arab backbone that combines specialized competencies in the field of protection in the Arab states and which has extensive relations with international institutions concerned with protection, can be the means for advancement utilized by Arab states in this important field that is critical for Arab social and economic progress in the upcoming period.
At the national level, it has become clear that the legislative gap must be bridged, because this legislation is what organizes all elements of industrial and intellectual property globally, and must be bridged in a way that is consistent with the Arab particulars and progressive ambitions.
At the national level and in the context of the new global trend towards blocs and conglomerates, proper coordination and consequent harmony is required for the laws and regulations that systemize industrial property protection in the Arab region. This will represent a first step towards achieving a unified Arab law to be applied in all Arab countries that is appropriate for the circumstances in the Arab world and represents its ambitions in creating reasonable social and economic progress.

I have tried in this modest paper, which is just a monitor of the legislative reality of the elements of industrial property protection, to put before the participants in the seminar of “Industrial Property Protective Legislation in Arab Countries” headings, that serve as a framework for discussion amongst the Arab technical and legal elite that has well-known expertise in the field of legislation. I also wished to present to you some of the recommendations, that the Arab Society for the Protection of Industrial Property can play a key role in implementing and drawing on your experience, so that together we can formulate an effective and important role for the protection of industrial property. This will have a strong tie to technological and economic development in the Arab world.
 
General Recommendations:
After reviewing the current legal conditions that organize the elements of industrial property protection in the Arab countries and the proposed draft legislation in this regard, we can draw the following general recommendations :

1. The need for closer professional ties and work towards enhancing the stature of the profession of industrial property protection by collaboration between the Arab Society for the Protection of Industrial Property and the Arab national associations.
2. Supporting the objectives of the Arab national associations in protecting industrial property and creating more of them, and cooperation with the international organizations working in this field.
3. Encouraging the accession of more Arab countries to the Paris Convention of 1883 related to the protection of industrial property and other treaties and conventions on this matter.
4. Work on the reform and amendment of legislation relating to the protection of industrial property through the preparation and submission of proposals and recommendations regarding this, in addition to working on harmonizing between Arab & international laws and legislation in a just manner for all parties.

5. Work on drafting a unified Arab model law that regulates all aspects of industrial property protection such as trademark laws, patents and intellectual protection, industrial models and designs and any other actions related to identifying/defining registration or signing a waiver on property and licensing.

6. Developing interest in establishing a general technology policy within general Arab strategies, in order to encourage innovation and scientific research and cultivating the tools for this research. This is considered important due to the role of these activities in technological advancement. Further actions suggested are creating research centers and supporting those that already exist, and linking their activities with the economic and social developmental plans.

7. The establishment of departments for patents or reorganizing existing ones, as this is considered one of the most important tools of benefiting from all elements of industrial property. This is important because industrial property is considered the vehicle responsible for all matters related to both technology and its contribution to spurring regional innovative activity on the one hand, and control over local licensing contracts that utilize patents and inventions on the other.
Saudi Arabia has taken a pioneering step in this area by creating an administrative and technical system for this type of department, within the King Abdul-Aziz City for Science and Technology.
8. The establishment of the Arab Patents Office along the lines of the European Office of Patents, where one application could be used for all Arab countries the applicant seeks to obtain protection in, utilizing the branch offices. This is an inevitable consequence of homogeneity.

9. To strengthen cooperation in the field of industrial property protection, ASPIP is holding a conference entitled "First International Arab Conference for the Protection of Industrial Property" under the slogan of "Protection of Industrial Property and Development" in Cairo next year. This comes in the midst of the growing awareness on the role of protection in the development process in the Arab world and its role as an indispensable tool in the stability and growth of the economy.

10. ASPIP will hold, in conjunction with WIPO and the University of Al-Ain in the UAE, a training session on the subject of patents and trademarks, for the first time in the Arabic language. This will be for workers in the profession of industrial property protection.

11. Development of the Industrial Property Protection magazine to cover all the areas addressed by industrial property protection, and meeting the wishes and aspirations of workers in the profession, producers and consumers alike. This magazine is the only one specialized in the protection of industrial property in the Arab world.