Trademarks Law (as amended by Law No. 34 of 1999) Official Gazette No. 4389 dated 1.11.1999
Article 1
Title and effective date
This law shall be called "the amended Trademarks Law for the year 1999" and shall
be read in conjunction with the Law No. 33 for the year 1952, referred to hereinafter
as the original law, as one law. This law shall come into force thirty days after the
date of its publication in the Official Gazette.
Article 2
Explanation of terms
The following terms and expressions wherever mentioned in the law shall have the
meanings assigned to each of them hereunder unless the context requires otherwise:
o The Ministry: The Ministry of Industry and Trade
o The Minister: The Minister of Industry and Trade
o The Registrar: The Registrar of Trademarks
o The Register: The Register of Trademarks
o The Trademark: Any visually perceptible sign used or to be used by any
person for distinguishing his goods or services from those of others.
o The Well-Known Mark: The mark with a world renown whose repute
surpassed the country of origin where it has been registered and acquired a
fame in the relevant sector among the consumer public in the Hashemite
Kingdom of Jordan.
o The Collective Mark: The mark used by a legal person for certifying the origin
of goods not manufactured by him or the materials out of which they were
made or the manufacturing precision or other characteristic of those goods.
Article 3
The Trademarks Register
1. A register named the Trademarks Register shall be kept in the Ministry under
the supervision of the Registrar. All trademarks, their owners' names and
addresses and the following matters shall be recorded in the Register:
a. Any transfer, assignment, ownership change or license to use from the
owner to third parties except for the confidential contents of the license
contract.
b. Any pledge or security interest made to a trademark or any restriction
to its use.
2. The public shall have the right to review the Trademarks Register pursuant to
the regulations issued by the Minister for this purpose and to be published in
the Official Gazette.
3. A computer may be used for recording marks and their particulars. The
particulars and printouts which are certified by the Registrar shall be an
authoritative source.
Article 4
Merger of the existing register
The trademarks register existing at the date of the coming into force of the present law
shall be merged into, and shall form a complementary part of the register provided for
in the preceding Article. Subject to the provisions of Article 30 of this law, the
validity of the original entry of any trademark in the register shall be determined in
accordance with the law in force at the date of such entry, and such trademark shall
retain its original date, but for all other purposes it shall be deemed to be a trademark
registered under this law.
Article 5
Inspection of the register and obtaining extracts thereof
The register kept under this law shall at all convenient times be open to inspection by
the public, subject to such regulations as may be prescribed. A certified copy of any
entry in such register shall be given to any person requesting the same after payment
of the prescribed fee.
Article 6
Trademark registration applications
A person desiring to have the exclusive use of a trademark for distinguishing goods of
his own production, manufacture, selection, or in respect of which he issued a
certificate, or goods in which he trades or intends to trade, may apply for the
registration of such trademark in accordance with the provisions of this law.
Article 7
Trademarks eligible for registration
1. A trademark shall be registered if it is distinctive, as to words, letters,
numbers, figures, colors, or other signs or any combination thereof and
visually perceptible.
2. For the purposes of this Article, "distinctive" shall mean applied in a manner
which secures distinguishing the goods of the proprietor of the trademark from
those of other persons.
3. In determining whether a trademark has a distinctive character as mentioned
here in before, the registrar or the court may, in the case of a trademark in
actual use, take into consideration the extent to which such use has rendered
the trademark in fact distinctive for the goods in respect of which it is
registered or is intended to be registered.
4. A trademark may be limited in whole or in part to one or more particular
colors In such instance, the fact that the trademark is limited to such colors
shall be taken into consideration by the registrar or the court when deciding on
the distinctiveness character of such trademark. If and so far as a trademark is
registered without limitation to color, it shall be considered to be registered for
all colors
5. The registration of a trademark should be restricted to particular goods or a
specified class of goods.
6. Any disagreement arising as to the class to which any goods belong shall be
determined by the registrar, whose decision shall be final.
Article 8
Marks which may not be registered as trademarks
The following may not be registered as trademarks:
1. Marks which resemble the emblem of His Majesty the King or royal crests or
the word royal or any other words, characters or representations which may
lead to the belief that the applicant enjoys royal patronage.
2. The insignia or decorations of the government of the Hashemite Kingdom of
Jordan or those of foreign states or countries unless with the authorization of
the competent authorities.
3. Marks indicating any official designation unless the application of which is
demanded by the competent authorities to whom such mark belongs or is
under their supervision.
4. Marks which resemble the national flag or the military or naval banners of the
Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan or its honorary decorations or insignia or the
national, military or naval banners.
5. Marks which include the following words and expressions: "patent",
"patented", "by royal patent", "registered", "registered design", "copyright",
"counterfeiting is forgery", or similar words or expressions.
6. Marks which are contrary to the public order or morality or which lead to
deceiving the public, or marks which encourage unfair trading competition or
contain false indications as to their real origin.
7. Marks consisting of figures, characters or words which are commonly used in
trade to distinguish or describe kinds of goods or their classes or describe the
type or class of goods, or words whose ordinary signification is geographical
or a surname, unless represented in a special manner, provided that nothing
contained in this paragraph shall be deemed to prohibit the registration of
marks of the nature described herein which have a distinctive character within
the meaning provided for in items 2 and 3 of Article (7).
8. Marks identical with or similar to emblems of exclusively religious
signification.
9. Marks which contain the picture, name or the trade name of a person, or the
name of a body corporate or of an association, unless the consent of the person
or body corporate concerned has been obtained. In the case of persons recently
dead, the registrar may ask for consents of their legal representatives.
10. A mark identical with one belonging to a different proprietor which is already
entered in the register in respect of the same goods or class of goods for which
the mark is intended to be registered, or so closely resembling such trademark
to the extent that it may lead to deceiving third parties.
11. Marks which are similar to or identical with the insignia of the Red Crescent
or the Red Cross on a white background or the insignia of the red Cross or the
Cross of Geneva.
12. The trademark which is identical or similar to, or constitutes a translation of, a
well-known trademark for use on similar or identical goods to those for which
that one is well-known for and whose use would cause confusion with the
well-known mark, or for use of different goods in such a way as to prejudice
the interests of the owner of the well-known mark and leads to believing that
there is a connection between its owner and those goods as well as the marks
which are similar or identical to the honorary badges, flags, and other insignia
as well as the names and abbreviations relating to international or regional
organizations or those that offend our Arab and Islamic age-old values.
Article 9
Name or description of goods
Where the name or description of any goods is incorporated in a trademark, the
registrar may refuse to register such mark in respect of any goods other than the goods
so named or described. Where the trademark incorporates the name or description of
any goods which varies in use, the registrar may permit the registration of the mark
incorporating the name or description in respect of goods other than those named or
described in the event the applicant points out in his application that a difference in
the name or description exists.
Article 10
Collective Marks
1. The Registrar may register a collective trademark if it meets the requirements
in Article 7 Paragraph (1). The collective mark shall be regarded, in all
respects, as a special trademark for the legal person registered in its name.
2. The ownership of a collective trademark shall not be assigned, be reregistered
after cancellation, or be abandoned except in the name of the legal person
registered originally in its name or in the name of his legal successor.
3. It shall be permissible to register a mark for noncommercial purposes like the
insignia adopted by public-good bodies or professional bodies for their
correspondence stationery or for its membership and shall be treated as a
collective mark.
4. The conditions for registering collective marks and all regulatory matters
thereof shall be governed by the implementing regulations to be issued by the
Minister for this purpose and to be published in the Official Gazette.
Article 11
Trademark registration application
1. Any person claiming to be the proprietor of a used or proposed to be used
trademark who is desirous of registering such trademark shall apply in writing
to the registrar in the prescribed manner.
2. Subject to the provisions of this law, the registrar may refuse such application
or may accept it absolutely or subject to conditions, amendments or
modifications as to the mode or place of use of the trademark or as to other
aspects.
3. A rejection by the registrar to register a trademark shall be subject to appeal to
the high court of justice.
4. The registrar or the high court of justice, as the case may be, may at any time,
whether before or after acceptance, correct any error in connection with any
application, or may ask the applicant to amend his application upon such terms
as the registrar or the high court of justice may deem fit to impose.
Article 12
Disclaimers
If a trademark incorporates matters in common use in the trade or otherwise is neither
in such common use nor has an obvious feature, the registrar or the high court of
justice may require, in deciding whether such trademark shall be entered or shall
remain entered in the register, as a condition for maintaining it entered in the register,
that the proprietor shall disclaim any right to the exclusive use of any part or parts of
such trademark, or of all or any portion of such matters, to the exclusive use of which
the registrar or the court holds him not to be entitled, or that he shall make such other
disclaimer as the registrar or the court may consider needful for the purpose of
defining the rights of the proprietor of the trademark under such registration, provided
always that no disclaimer by the proprietor of the trademark entered in the register
shall affect any of his rights except to the extent resulting from the registration of the
trademark in respect of which the disclaimer is made.
Article 13
Publication of an application
When accepting an application for the registration of a trademark, whether such
acceptance be absolute or subject to conditions or limitations, the registrar shall, as
soon as possible after such acceptance, cause the application in the manner in which it
has been accepted to be published in the prescribed manner. Such publication shall
include all the conditions and limitations subject to which the application has been
accepted.
Article 14
Opposition to Registration
1. Any person may within three months as from the date of the publication of an
application for the registration of a trademark, or within such other time as
may be prescribed, file with the registrar a notice of opposition to the
registration of such trademark. In the case of applications published before the
coming into force of this law, the period within which and the manner in
which the notice of opposition thereto may be filed shall be governed by the
provisions of the trademarks law in force on the date of publication.
2. A notice of opposition shall be given in writing in the prescribed manner and
shall include a statement of the grounds for the opposition.
3. The registrar shall send a copy of such notice of opposition to the applicant
who shall, within the prescribed time after the receipt of such notice, send to
the registrar in the prescribed manner a counter-statement including the
grounds on which his application for the registration of the trademark is based.
If he fails to do so, he shall be deemed to have abandoned his application.
4. If the applicant sends a counter-statement, the registrar shall furnish a copy
thereof to the person or persons opposing the registration, and shall after
hearing the parties, if necessary, and considering the evidence, decide whether,
and subject to what conditions, registration is to be permitted.
5. The decision of the registrar may be appealed to the high court of justice.
6. An appeal made under this Article shall be submitted within twenty days as
from the date of the decision of the registrar. When debating such appeal, the
high court of justice shall hear the parties and the registrar, if necessary, and
shall issue a decision determining whether, and subject to what conditions,
registration is to be permitted.
7. On hearing any such appeal, any party may, either in the manner prescribed or
by special leave of the high court of justice, bring forward further evidence for
the consideration of the high court of justice.
8. In the course of an appeal under this Article, no further grounds for the
opposition to the registration of a trademark shall be demonstrated by the
opponent or the registrar other than those stated by the opponent as here in
above provided, except by leave of the high court of justice hearing the appeal.
Where any further grounds of opposition are taken, the applicant shall be
entitled, after having been notified of such action in the prescribed manner, to
withdraw his application without payment of the costs incurred by the
opponent.
9. When examining any appeal made under this Article, the high court of justice
may, after hearing the registrar, permit the applied trademark to be modified in
any manner not substantially affecting the identity of such trademark. In such
a case, the trademark so modified shall be published in the prescribed manner
before being registered.
Article 15
Registration date
1. If the application for the registration of a trademark was accepted and has not
been opposed, and the prescribed time for opposition expires, or having been
opposed and the opposition has been decided in favor of the applicant, the
registrar shall register the said trademark, on receiving payment of the
prescribed fee, and unless the application has been accepted in error or unless
the court otherwise directs. The trademark shall then be registered as from the
date of the application for registration.
In the case of an application filed in compliance with the provisions of Article
41 of this law, the trademark shall be registered as from the date of application
for registration in the foreign country, and such date shall be deemed for the
purposes of this law to be the date of registration.
2. On the registration of a trademark the registrar shall issue to the applicant a
certificate of the registration of such trademark in the prescribed form.
Article 16
Non-completion of registration
Where the registration of a trademark is not completed within twelve months as from
the date of application by reason of default on the part of the applicant, the registrar
may, after giving notice of the non-completion to the applicant in writing in the
prescribed manner, treat the application as abandoned unless completed within the
time specified by the registrar in that notice.
Article 17
Rival claims to identical trademarks
Where separate applications are made by different persons to be registered as
proprietors respectively of trademarks which are identical or closely resemble each
other, in respect of the same goods or description of goods, the registrar may refuse to
register any of such persons until their rights in respect of such trademarks have been
established either:
1. by reaching between themselves to an agreement which meets with the
approval of the registrar, or
2. by the high court of justice to whom the registrar shall refer the dispute in the
absence of such agreement.
Article 18
Concurrent use of a trademark
1. In a case of honest concurrent use of a trademark or under circumstances
which in the opinion of the registrar make proper the registration of the same
trademark in the name of more than one person, the registrar may permit the
registration or such a trademark or any trademarks which closely resemble it,
for the same goods or class of goods in the names of more than one person,
subject to such conditions and limitations as he may think fit to impose as to
the mode or place of use or other respects.
2. A decision of the registrar under this Article may be appealed to the high court
of justice, and the court shall on appeal have the same powers as are by this
Article conferred upon the registrar.
3. An appeal under this Article shall be submitted within thirty days as from the
date of the decision of the registrar.
Article 19
Assignment of trademarks and allocation to partners on the dissolution of a
partnership
It shall be allowed to assign or to pledge the trademark without the ownership transfer
of the business concern using the mark in distinguishing its products or to assign or
pledge the business concern itself. The trademark may also be subject to a security
interest independently from the business concern.
1. The ownership of the trademark shall be transferred with the ownership
transfer of the business concern if it closely relates to it unless otherwise is
agreed upon.
2. If the business concern ownership is transferred without the trademark, the
transferor may continue using the trademark for the goods registered for.
3. The assignment or pledge of a trademark shall not be invoked against third
parties except as of the recordal date thereof in the register and shall be
published in the Official Gazette.
4. The Implementing Regulations to be issued by the Minister for this purpose
and to be published in the Official Gazette shall determine the procedures for
trademark assignment, pledge, security interest and all legal disposals of the
trademark.
Article 20
Duration of registration
The ownership right of a trademark shall be for 10 years as of its registration date and
may be renewed for 10-year periods under the provisions of this law.
1. The trademarks registered or renewed before the enforceability of this law
shall be renewed for 10 years when their validity periods expire.
Article 21
Registration Period Renewal
The Registrar shall renew the trademark registration upon a request from its registrant
pursuant to the provisions of this law.
1. Should the trademark owner fail to renew the trademark registration, then it
shall be regarded as canceled under the law after the elapse of one year of its
renewal due date. A third party may apply for its registration in his name after
the elapse of another year.
2. The owner of the trademark registration which is regarded as canceled may
apply for its re-registration at any time unless it has been registered in the
name of a third party.
Article 22
Cancellation of a trademark for nonuse
Without prejudice to the provisions of Article 26 of this law, whoever is interested
may apply to the registrar for the cancellation of any trademark registered in the name
of a third party if its registrant has not actually used it continuously for a period of
three years preceding the application unless the registrant proves that nonuse has been
due to special circumstances in the trade or to justifiable reasons which prevented use.
1. Use of the registered trademark by third parties under the authorization of its
owner shall be regarded as use for the purposes of continued registration under
the provision of Paragraph 1 of this Article.
2. The Registrar shall permit, before he issues his decision on the cancellation
application, the two parties to present their pleadings. The Registrar's decision
shall be subject to appeal before the High Court of Justice.
Article 23
Registration of the assignment of trademarks
Where a person becomes the proprietor of a registered trademark by assignment,
transfer or other legal action, he shall apply to the registrar to enter his title to the
trademark in the register, and the registrar shall, upon receipt of such application and
conviction of the title, register such trademark in the name of that person, and shall
cause an entry of the mark to be made in the register. Any decision of the registrar
made under this Article shall be subject to appeal to the high court of justice.
1. Except in cases of appeals under this Article, and unless the court otherwise
directs, a document or instrument in respect of which no entry has been made
in the register in accordance with the provisions of the preceding paragraph
shall not be admitted as evidence supporting title to a trademark.
Article 24
Incidental alteration of registered trademarks
The registered proprietor of a trademark may apply to the registrar in the prescribed
manner for permission to add to or alter such trademark in any manner not affecting
the identity of the trademark, and the registrar may refuse such permission or may
grant it on such terms and subject to such limitations as he may think fit. Any such
refusal or permission shall be subject to appeal to the high court of justice.
1. If permission to add or alter is granted, the trademark as altered shall be
published in the prescribed manner.
Article 25
Amendment of the register
Having regard to the provisions of this law:
1. Any person aggrieved by non-insertion in the register or removal from the
register of any entry made without sufficient cause to justify such entry, or by
any entry unfairly remaining on the register, or by any error or defect in any
entry standing in the register, shall have the options of submitting an
application in the prescribed manner to the high court of justice, or make such
application to the registrar in the first instance.
2. The registrar may, at any stage of the proceedings, refer any such application
to the high court of justice, or he may after hearing the parties, determine the
case between them, subject to appeal to the high court of justice.
3. The high court of justice may, in any proceeding brought before it under this
Article, decide on any question that may be necessary or expedient to decide
in connection with the amendment of the register.
4. In the event of falsification in the registration, assignment or transfer of a
registered trademark, the registrar may himself apply to the high court of
justice under the provisions of this Article.
5. An application for removal from the register of a trademark on the grounds
that there is no justification for its registration according to the provisions of
Article 6) 7 or 8 of this law, or on the grounds that the registration of the
trademark creates an unfair competition in respect of the applicant's rights in
the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan, must be made within five years as from the
registration of the trademark.
6. Any order of the high court of justice amending the register shall direct that a
notice of the amendment be served upon the registrar by the party in whose
favor the decision was issued and the registrar shall, upon receipt of such
notice, amend the register according to the pronouncement of the decision.
Article 26
Rights of the proprietor of a trademark
1.
a. The right to use the duly registered trademark shall be limited to its
owner and he shall have the right to prevent third parties from using
confusingly identical or similar marks without his prior consent.
Confusion shall be assumed if an identical trademark is used for
identical goods.
b. If a trademark is well-known and if it is not registered, then its owner
may demand the competent court to prevent third parties from using it
on identical or unidentical goods or services provided that such use
indicates a connection between those goods or services and the well-
known mark and provided that there is a likelihood of prejudice to the
interests of the trademark owner because of such use. A likelihood of
confusion shall be assumed if an identical well-known mark is used on
identical goods.
c. If two or more registered persons of one trademark (or a mark
confusingly similar) cover the same goods, none of them shall alone
have the right to use it under the registration (except to the extent
determined by the Registrar or the High Court of Justice). Otherwise,
each of them shall have the self-same rights as if he were the only
registered proprietor of the trademark.
2. The trademark owner may license one or more persons, under a notarized
contract to be filed with the Registrar, to use the mark for all or some of the
goods. Likewise, the trademark owner shall have the right to use it unless
otherwise is agreed upon. The use license must not exceed the protection
period of the registered mark.
3. The conditions under which the license contract may be recorded, renewed,
enforced in the geographical area, rescinded, and struck off as well as any
other relevant matters shall be governed by the implementing regulations to be
issued by the Minister and to be published in the Official Gazette.
Article 27
Correction of the register
The registrar may on the strength of a request made in the prescribed manner by the
registrant:
1. Correct any error in the name or address of the registrant.
2. Enter any change in the name or address of the registrant.
3. Strike off any goods or classes of goods from those for which a trademark is
registered.
4. Enter a disclaimer or memorandum relating to a trademark, if that disclaimer
or memorandum does not in any way extend the rights given by the existing
registration of such trademark, or
5. Cancel the entry of a trademark in the register.
Any decision of the registrar made under the provisions of this Article shall be subject
to appeal before the high court of justice.
Article 28
Applications for the insertion in the register of entries relating to amendment or
substitution of the classes of goods
The minister of commerce may, from time to time, on the strength of a motion by the
registrar and approval of the council of ministers, set down regulations, prescribe such
forms and generally do such things as he thinks expedient for empowering the
registrar to amend the register, whether by making new entries or expunging or
varying entries therein, to the extent which may be requisite for the purpose of
securing conformity between the designation therein of the goods or classes of goods,
in respect of which the trademark is registered, with any amended or substituted
classification that he may order to be entered.
1. In exercising any power of those conferred on him in accordance with the
aforesaid, the registrar may not make any amendment of the register that may
result in adding any goods or any other class of goods to those goods or
classes of goods in respect of which a trademark is registered immediately
prior to the date the amendment is to be made. He may not also antedate the
registration of a trademark in respect of goods with a date previous to the
registration, provided that the provisions of this paragraph shall not affect any
aspect in relation to the goods which the registrar believes the application of
the provisions of this paragraph to which shall involve undue complexity and
that the addition or antedating, as the case may be, shall not tackle a
substantial portion of the goods and shall not prejudice the rights of any
person.
2. A proposal for the amendment of the register shall, for the purposes of the
aforesaid, be notified to the registered proprietor of the trademark affected.
The said registrant may appeal to the high court of justice, provided that the
proposal shall be published along with any modification thereto. Likewise, any
person aggrieved by the proposal may oppose the amendment before the
registrar on the grounds that the proposed amendment contravenes the
provisions of the last preceding paragraph. The decision of the registrar on any
such opposition shall be subject to appeal to the high court of justice.
Article 29
Registration is a principal evidence
The registration of a person as the proprietor of a trademark shall in all legal
proceedings relating to the registration constitute evidence of the validity of the
original registration of such trademark and all subsequent assignments and transfers
of the trademark.
Article 30
Trademarks registered under previous laws and
other provisions relating to the transitional period
No trademark which is entered in the register at the commencement of this law and
which under the present law is a registrable trademark, shall be removed or struck off
the register on the mere grounds that it was not registrable under the laws in force at
the date of its registration. But there is no provision in this Article which shall subject
any person to any liability as a result of any act or thing done before the enforcement
of this law to which he would not have been subject under the law then in force.
Article 31
The registrar's right to deliver a notice of the procedures for the rectification
thereof
In any legal proceedings for the purpose of alteration or rectification of the register,
the registrar may appear before the court and express his point of view, and shall
appear before the court if so directed. Unless the court sees otherwise, the registrar
may in lieu of appearing in person submit to the court a statement in writing signed by
him and including what he considers relevant details of the proceedings effected
before him in relation to the disputed matter or of the grounds on the basis of which
he issued his decision in respect of such case, or of the practice followed by the office
in similar cases, or such other matters affecting the case which are within his
knowledge in his capacity as the registrar. Such a statement shall be deemed to from
part of the evidence in the proceedings.
Article 32
Certificates of the registrar constitute evidence
A certificate purporting to be under the hand of the registrar as to any entry, the
matter or thing which he is authorized by the provisions of this law or any regulations
made thereunder to make or do, shall be prima facie evidence of the entry having been
made and of the contents thereof, and of the matter or thing having been done or not
done.
Article 33
Penalty for falsely claiming registration of a trademark
1. Any person who presents a trademark as registered while it is not, shall be
liable to a fine not exceeding fifty Dinars on conviction for every offense.
2. A person shall, for the purposes of this Article, be deemed to have presented a
trademark as registered if he uses in connection with the trademark the word
"registered" or any words which expressly or implicitly indicate that such a
trademark has been registered.
Article 34
Unregistered trademarks
1. No person shall have the right to file a lawsuit to claim damages for any
infringement upon a trademark not registered in the Kingdom. However, he
shall have the right to apply for the Registrar to cancel a trademark registered
in the Kingdom by a person who doesn't own it after it was registered abroad
if the grounds claimed are the ones mentioned in paragraphs 6, 7, 10 & 12 of
Article 8 of this law.
2. The decision issued by the Registrar may be appealed under this law to the
High Court of Justice within 60 days of its notification date.
3.
Article 35
Infringement cases
The court examining cases of infringement of trademarks shall accept certificates on
current commercial transactions in respect of the process of manufacturing the goods
for which the trademark is registered, and any trademark or manufacturing process
legitimately used in connection with such goods by other persons.
Article 36
Use of the name, place of business or description of goods
A registration effected under this law shall not prevent any genuine use by a person of
his own name or place of business, or that of any of his predecessors in business, or
the use of any genuine description of the type and class of his goods.
Article 37
Passing-off actions
The provisions of this law include nothing which may affect the right to initiate a
legal action against any person for the distribution of goods considering them to be as
those of another person, or in safeguarding the rights of the owner of the goods.
Article 38
Offenses
1. Whoever committed with the intention to cheat any of the following deeds
shall be penalized by an imprisonment term of no less than three months and
no more than one year, or a fine of no less than 100 Jordanian Dinars and of
no more than 3000 Jordanian Dinars or by those two penalties:
a. Whoever counterfeited a trademark registered under this law, imitated
it in any other way that misleads the public, or affixed a counterfeit or
imitation mark on the same goods for which the trademark has been
registered.
b. Whoever illegally used a trademark owned by another on the same
class of goods or services for which that trademark is registered.
c. Whoever sold or possessed for the purpose of selling or offered for sale
goods bearing a trademark whose use is regarded as an offense under
paragraphs (A) and (B) of this Article if he was cognizant of that
beforehand.
2. Notwithstanding what is mentioned in paragraph 1 of this Article, whoever
sells, or offers for sale, or possesses for the purpose of selling goods bearing a
trademark whose use is regarded as a contravention under the items (A) and
(B) of paragraph 1 shall be penalized by a fine of no less than 50 Jordanian
Dinars and no more than 500 Jordanian Dinars.
3. The provisions of paragraph 1 of this Article shall apply to whoever started to
commit any of those acts provided for in this Article or aided or abetted
another to commit it.
Article 39
Confiscation or destruction of goods by court order
1. When filing a civil or criminal lawsuit, the owner of a registered trademark
may, while reviewing the case, ask the court, provided that he submits a bank
or monetary guarantee which the court accepts, for the following:
a. To stop the infringement.
b. To make a precautionary seizure of the goods in regard of which the
infringement has been committed whenever they were.
c. To preserve the evidence relating to the infringement.
2.
a. Before filing a civil or criminal lawsuit, the owner of the trademark
claiming infringement may request the court to take any of the
measures provided for in paragraph 1 without notifying the defendant
if it is proven that he is the owner of the trademark and that his rights
were infringed or that the infringement is imminent or that it is likely
he will sustain irreparable damage or if it is feared that the evidence
will be hidden or destroyed provided that the application is
accompanied by a bank or monetary guarantee accepted by the court.
The defendant may appeal this decision within eight days of the date of
its notification or understanding of it.
b. If the trademark owner doesn't file his lawsuit within eight days of the
court's decision, all the measures taken in this regard shall be null and
void.
3. The defendant may claim damages if it is proven as a result of the lawsuit that
the plaintiff is not rightful in his lawsuit or he hasn't filed a lawsuit during the
prescribed period.
4. The court may decide to seize the goods, materials for packaging, wrapping
and advertising, plates, seals, and other tools and materials predominantly
used in affixing the trademark on the goods or which the infringement was
made with or stemmed from. The court may order to destroy them or to
dispose of them for noncommercial purposes.
Article 40
Exercise of discretionary powers by the registrar
Where any discretionary or other power is given to the registrar in accordance with
this law or the regulations made hereunder, he shall not exercise that power adversely
to the interests of the applicant for registration or the registered proprietor of the
trademark in question, without giving such applicant or registered proprietor an
opportunity of being heard, if the registrar is duly required to do so and within the
prescribed time.
Article 41
Recognition of trademarks registered abroad
upon adhesion of Jordan to international conventions
1. If the Kingdom is bound by a bilateral agreement or is a member to an
international convention which grants a reciprocal protection to the trademarks
registered with any of them, then any national of the state member to the
agreement or convention may file an application to the registrar to protect his
trademark. Also, he shall have the priority right to those who filed prior
applications in the Kingdom for that trademark provided that he files his
trademark application in the Kingdom within six months of the following day
to his application in his home country. In this case the registration date shall
be regarded as the date of filing the actual trademark application in that
country. He shall not have the right to file any civil or criminal lawsuit before
the actual date on which his trademark has been registered in the Kingdom.
2. The provisions which provide temporary protection for the trademarks on the
goods displayed in national or international exhibitions which are held in the
Kingdom shall be governed by the regulations to be issued for this purpose.
That shall not extend the priority deadlines referred to in the previous
paragraph.
Article 42
Procedures followed in the registration of trademarks
An application for the registration of a trademark under the last preceding Article
shall be made in the same manner as for an ordinary application under this law,
provided that an application for the registration of the mark has already been duly
made in the country of origin.
Article 43
All the conditions and provisions mentioned in this law relating to trademarks which
distinguish goods shall apply to the marks which distinguish services.
Article 44
Announcement of the states adhering to international conventions
The provisions of Articles (41) and (42) of this law shall apply in the case of those
foreign states to which the government of Jordan by a decision of the council of
ministers declares them to be applicable.
Article 45
Power of the registrar to set down regulations
The council of ministers may from time to time and with the approval of His Majesty
the King set down the regulations which are necessary for the carrying into effect of
this law in general and the following objectives in particular:
1. Fixing the fees payable under this law.
2. Classifying goods for the purpose of registration of trademarks or for requiring
the submission of copies such as these.
3. Regulating the performance of the office in general in relation to trademarks
and all things by this law placed under the direction or control of the registrar.
Article 46
Official fees
1. There shall be paid in respect of applications and registrations and other
matters under this law such fees as may be prescribed by regulations.
2. All fees collected in accordance with such regulations shall be paid to the
registrar, who shall in turn pay them into the ministry of finance.
Article 47
Abrogation
1. The Jordanian Trademarks Law of 1930 and all its amendments are hereby
abrogated.
2. The Palestinian Trademarks Law No. 35 for the year 1938 and all its
amendments are hereby abrogated.
3. All Jordanian and Palestinian legislations promulgated before the enactment of
this law shall be abrogated to the extent to which these legislations are
repugnant to the provisions of this law.
Article 48
The Prime Minister and Ministers shall be entrusted with the implementation of the
provisions of this law.