• What Is the Board of Appeals?
• Major Tasks of the Board of Appeals
• How to Lodge an Appeal?
• Where to Get a Consultation on Lodging of an Appeal?

What Is the Board of Appeals?

The Board of Appeals is a specialized subdivision of the National Center of Intellectual Property (hereinafter the Center) that provides prior-to-court adjustment of disputes over the matters of protectability of industrial property rights titles in the Republic of Belarus as well as exercises power on other matters as vested to the Board of Appeals by legislative acts of the Republic of Belarus.

Major Tasks of the Board of Appeals

In accordance with its competence, the Board of Appeals:

• against a decision of preliminary examination on the refusal to grant a patent for an invention;

• against a decision of preliminary examination in respect of an application for trademark registration on the refusal of application allowance or on the application allowance with the changed list of goods and (or) services for which registration has been sought;

• against a decision of patent examination on the refusal to grant a patent for an invention, industrial design, plant variety;

• against a decision of examination on the refusal of trademark registration in respect of claimed goods and (or) services taken as a result of reexamination;

• against a decision of examination on the registration of a trademark in respect of a part of goods and (or) services taken as a result of reexamination;

• against a decision of preliminary examination on the refusal to consider an application for registration and grant of the right to use an appellation of origin;

• against a decision on the refusal to register an appellation of origin and to grant the right to use it;

• against a decision on the refusal to grant the right to use an appellation of origin, which has already been registered;

• against a decision of examination on the refusal to register an integrated circuit topography;

• to a decision of preliminary examination on the refusal to consider an application for a plant variety;

• to the grant of a patent for an invention, utility model, industrial design, plant variety;

• to the registration of a trademark;

• to the registration of an appellation of origin;

• for recognition of a trademark to be well-known in the Republic of Belarus;

• for termination of registration and a certificate of right to use an appellation of origin;

considers other complaints, objections and claims if their consideration is attributed to the competence of the Board of Appeals by the legislation of the Republic of Belarus;                                     

proceeding from the results of consideration of complaints, objections and claims, takes decisions in accordance with the legislation of the Republic of Belarus.

One may appeal against a decision of the Board to the Supreme Court Patent Chamber of the Republic of Belarus within six months from the date of the decision receipt.  

How to Lodge an Appeal?

The appeals, objections and claims are lodged with the Center by an applicant directly or by his representative – a patent attorney of the Republic of Belarus.

An appeal/complaint, objection or claim shall have the following data indicated:

• filing number of an application or the number of a patent, registration or certificate in case of their contestation;

• the name of a natural person or the name of a legal person lodging a complaint, objection or claim;

• mail address for correspondence;

• the matter of a dispute as far as appealing against decisions is concerned;

• the exhaustive indication of all motives and arguments of an applicant including comparative analysis of a proposed object and all objects opposed to it (in case of refusal to grant a patent, certificate or to register);

• reasonable arguments, evidences and substantiation of circumstances being, on an applicant’s opinion, the ground for his demands;

• precisely formulated demands of an applicant with regard to the matter of a dispute.

An appeal should have a document attesting payment of the fee for lodging of a complaint, objection or claim attached in accordance with the established procedure if the fee payment is prescribed by the Decree «On Patent Fees».

If the document attesting fee payment in accordance with the established procedure is not attached with the appeal, objection or claim such appeal, objection or claim is considered to be not lodged.  

Appeals are considered at a meeting of the Board of Appeals collegium within a period of four months from the date of their receipt by the Board of Appeals with the exception of appeals against decisions of examination on the refusal to register integral circuit topographies, which should be considered within one month.  

Objections and claims are considered at a meeting of the collegium within a period of six months from the date of their receipt by the Board of Appeals with the exception of objections to decisions of preliminary examination on the refusal to consider applications for plant varieties, which should be considered within one month.

If a appeal, objection or claim is admitted to proceedings a person who has lodged such an appeal receives a notice of the appeal being admitted to consideration with indication of a case number and a date planned for holding a meeting of the Board of Appeals collegium.

Hearing of Appeals?

Hearing of appeals, objections and claims is carried out at a collegium meeting of the Board of Appeals, with as minimum as three members being present.

The following persons may participate in appeal hearing: a person who lodged an appeal, objection or claim, a holder of contested patent, registration or certificate and/or their representatives, a representative of a subdivision of the Center, which carried out examination.

A collegium meeting is chaired by the collegium chairman. The minutes of the meeting are taken in the course thereof.

Substantive hearing of an appeal, objection and claim begins with a case report made by the collegium chairman or by one of the collegium members.

Hearing is further carried out in the following sequence:

• pleading of the person who lodged an appeal, an objection, a claim and (or) his representative;

• pleading of a representative of the examination department (division), which decision is disputed;

• pleading of the holder of contested patent, certificate or registration and (or) his representative in case of objection hearing;

• replies of the parties to questions of the collegium members.

Where to Get an Advice on Lodging of an Appeal ?

An applicant may have advice on how to lodge appeals, objections and claims with the Board of Appeals:

• with patent attorneys of the Republic of Belarus;

• at the advisory service points of the Training Center of Intellectual Property;

• at the Appeal Division of the Center;

• at a specialized legal advisory office.