What's New

April 7, 2009

2009 Trade-mark Agent Examination Notice

Under the provisions of subsection 20(2) of the Trade-marks Regulations, notice is hereby given that the 2009 qualifying examination will be held on October 20 and 21, 2009.

A person who proposes to sit for the examination must notify the Registrar of Trade-marks in writing and submit to the Registrar an affidavit or statutory declaration setting out the person's experience, duties and responsibilities in the area of trade-mark law and practice, and pay the prescribed fee ($400).

The deadline to apply, submit the affidavit or statutory declaration and pay the prescribed fee, is July 31, 2009.

For more information, visit the ‘How to become a registered trade-mark agent’ section of our website.

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March 31, 2009

New Practice Notice in Opposition now in effect

The Trade-marks Opposition Board has updated its practice as of March 31, 2009 through the introduction of a new practice notice entitled Practice in Trade-mark Opposition Proceedings. The changes to the new practice notice include:

• Simplifying and clarifying the Registrar's benchmarks for granting extensions of time.
• Providing guidance with respect to the granting of extensions of time in exceptional circumstances.
• Encouraging parties to pursue settlement and mediation early in the opposition proceeding.
• Introducing a new practice of granting extensions of time amounting to a cooling-off period for parties to pursue settlement and mediation. In particular, the new practice notice will allow the opponent to request one extension of time up to a maximum benchmark of nine (9) months on consent either prior to filing its statement of opposition or its Rule 41(1) evidence with the possibility for the applicant to also request one further extension of time up to a maximum benchmark of nine (9) months on consent either prior to filing its counter statement or its Rule 42(1) evidence.
• Introducing a new practice with respect to the scheduling of hearings.

This new Practice in Trade-mark Opposition Proceedings replaces the previous practice notice entitled "Procedure before the Trade-marks Opposition Board as of October 1, 2007". For any questions concerning the new practice notice please contact Darlene Carreau, A/Chairperson Trade-marks Opposition Board at 819-997-2469.

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March 24, 2009

Canadian Patent Database Upgrade

CIPO has upgraded the Canadian Patent Database so that the general public can now download and view biological sequence listings (BSL). All BSLs that CIPO has in electronic text format will be available for each Patent application beginning with the version closest to, but earlier than, the open-to-public inspection date, up to the current version. Please be aware that some BSLs can be very large and may take a substantial amount of time to download. As we continue to improve our products and services, your feedback is important to assist us with future enhancements.

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March 24, 2009

Practice Notice on Unity of Invention

The proposed Practice Notice concerning Unity of Invention was open for consultations from February 3, 2009, to March 5, 2009, inclusive. No comments were received; therefore this Notice is in effect as of March 24, 2009. This Notice concerns Section 36 of the Patent Act, which states that a patent shall be granted for one invention only. In accordance with section 36 of the Patent Rules, the Commissioner shall not consider a patent application to claim more than one invention if the subject matters defined by the claims are so linked as to form a single general inventive concept. For more information, see Patent Notices.

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March 04, 2009

CIPO News Update — March 04, 2009

Get the latest IP news from this month's edition of CIPO News Updates

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February 23, 2009

New and Upcoming Electronic Services at CIPO

CIPO is committed to working with its partners and clients to achieve a world-class intellectual property (IP) regime that is efficient and competitive. From November 24 to December 8, 2008, CIPO held information sessions in Ottawa, Montréal, Vancouver, Calgary and Toronto to inform and engage its clients on recent and upcoming improvements to its electronic products and services. Over 160 clients attended the sessions.

Each day-long session (see the agenda and descriptions) was divided into two parts; the morning was devoted to CIPO’s Enterprise Business Renewal (EBR) initiative; and the afternoon focused on e-service offerings. Consult the full article for short summaries of the EBR portion of the day, which include results from the discussions, and links to new products presented at these sessions.

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February 6, 2009

New Practice Notice in Opposition comes into effect on March 31, 2009

The Trade-marks Opposition Board will be changing its practice as of March 31, 2009 through the introduction of a new practice notice entitled Practice in Trade-mark Opposition Proceedings. The changes to the new practice notice include:

• Simplifying and clarifying the Registrar's benchmarks for granting extensions of time.
• Providing guidance with respect to the granting of extensions of time in exceptional circumstances.
• Encouraging parties to pursue settlement and mediation early in the opposition proceeding.
• Introducing a new practice of granting extensions of time amounting to a cooling-off period for parties to pursue settlement and mediation. In particular, the new practice notice will allow the opponent to request one extension of time up to a maximum benchmark of nine (9) months on consent either prior to filing its statement of opposition or its Rule 41(1) evidence with the possibility for the applicant to also request one further extension of time up to a maximum benchmark of nine (9) months on consent either prior to filing its counter statement or its Rule 42(1) evidence.
• Introducing a new practice with respect to the scheduling of hearings.

On March 31, 2009, this new Practice in Trade-mark Opposition Proceedings, will replace the previous practice notice entitled "Procedure before the Trade-marks Opposition Board as of October 1, 2007". For any questions concerning the new practice notice please contact Darlene Carreau, A/Chairperson Trade-marks Opposition Board at 819-997-2469.

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February 3, 2009

The Patent Branch to begin consultation on a proposed Practice Notice on "Unity of Invention"

Over the next month, the Canadian Intellectual Property Office (CIPO) will be holding an official consultation period to collect public feedback on a proposed Practice Notice on "Unity of Invention."

Stakeholders will be provided with one month to provide comments on the proposed Notice, beginning February 3, 2009 and ending on March 5, 2009.

For any questions regarding the consultation process, please contact the Client Service Centre at cipo.contact@ic.gc.ca, by fax at (819) 994-1989, or by regular mail to the following address:

Canadian Intellectual Property Office
Patent Branch
50 Victoria Street,
Place du Portage II
Gatineau, QC  K1A 0C9
Attention: Félix Dionne

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January 27, 2009

Annual Report 2007-08 — Moving Forward: Advancing the Marketplace

CIPO's 2007-2008 Annual Report was tabled in the House of Commons on January 27, 2009.

The Report reflects our commitment to provide our clients with more efficient, accessible and responsive services as we help them strengthen their competitive advantage while encouraging effective protection and use of their intellectual property assets, both domestically and abroad.

2007-2008 proved to be a productive year. CIPO reduced turn-around times, initiated a consultation framework, and launched its multi-year Enterprise Business Renewal initiative — a portfolio of projects that will create a secure, cost-effective operational environment focused on client self-sufficiency and satisfaction as part of our five-year Strategic Plan.

Read more on the highlights of 2007-2008.

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January 27, 2009

The Patent Branch begins a second consultation on the first package of proposed amendments to the Patent Rules

Between November 27, 2008 and January 5, 2009, the Canadian Intellectual Property Office (CIPO) held a public consultation on "Proposed Amendments to the Patent Rules – Package #1". CIPO received the following comments and suggestions.

In response to comments received, CIPO has revised its proposal regarding inventorship and ownership and is providing stakeholders with a further opportunity to submit their comments on this specific issue. Comments will be accepted from January 27, 2009 to February 26, 2009.

The proposed amendments can be found on our consultation web page.

Your comments will be taken into consideration and will add value to the process of regulatory reform. They will also be posted on this website following the consultation period.

For any questions regarding the consultation process, please contact the Client Service Centre at cipo.contact@ic.gc.ca, by fax at (819) 994-1989, or by regular mail to the following address:

Canadian Intellectual Property Office
Patent Branch
50 Victoria Street,
Place du Portage II
Gatineau, QC K1A 0C9
Attention: Félix Dionne

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January 26, 2009

Revision of Requirements and Procedures of PPH Pilot Program

On January 28, 2008, the Canadian Intellectual Property Office (CIPO) launched the Canada-U.S. Patent Prosecution Highway (PPH) joint pilot program with the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO), an initiative that provides a means of significantly accelerating examination of patent applications if examination work has already been conducted at another intellectual property office.

Effective January 26, 2009, the requirements and procedures of the PPH pilot program will be revised to expand potential participation in this initiative. As of that date, certain patent applications based on Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT) filings (where the PCT application does not contain any priority claim) will also qualify to participate in the PPH pilot program.

The revised procedures and requirements for filing a request to CIPO for participation in the PPH pilot program will be made available January 26, 2009 on the CIPO PPH website.

For further information on the PPH pilot program revisions, contact Javier Jorge, PPH Project Manager, at 819-956-9974, or by email to pph@ic.gc.ca.

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January 23, 2009

TMOB is currently consulting on a new practice notice for Section 45 Proceedings

TMOB is holding an official consultation period on a new Section 45 practice notice from January 23, 2009 to March 13, 2009. The proposed amendments to the Section 45 practice notice aim to modernise and streamline the Registrar's practice in Section 45 proceedings, including the introduction of a new practice whereby the Registrar may, in limited cases, issue a final decision with respect to the trade-mark registration based solely on the evidence filed by the registered owner. The Registrar will also introduce new practices with respect to the scheduling of oral hearings and the granting of extensions of time.

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