WORLD TRADE ORGANIZATION  
ORGANISATION MONDIALE DU COMMERCE  
ORGANIZACIÓN MUNDIAL DEL COMERCIO  IP/N/1/SVK/T/5 
7 September 2004 
 (04-3719) 
Council for Trade-Related Aspects of 
Intellectual Property Rights Original:   English/ 
 anglais/  inglés 
 
MAIN DEDICATED INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY 
LAWS AND REGULATIONS NOTIFIED UNDER 
ARTICLE 63.2 OF THE AGREEMENT 
 
SLOVAK REPUBLIC 
  The present document reproduces the consolidated text
1 of Act No. 55/1997 Coll. on 
Trademarks (see document IP/N/1/SVK/T/3) as ame nded by Act No. 577/2001 Coll. (see document 
IP/N/1/SVK/T/4) and by Act No. 14/2004 Coll., notifi ed by the Slovak Republic under Article 63.2 of 
the Agreement by means of a communication from its Delegation dated 15 June 2004.   
 
 Conseil des aspects des droits de propriété 
intellectuelle qui touchent au commerce  
  
PRINCIPALES LOIS ET RÉGLEMENTATIONS CONSACRÉES À LA 
PROPRIÉTÉ INTELLECTUELLE NOTIFIÉES AU TITRE 
DE L'ARTICLE 63:2 DE L'ACCORD 
 
RÉPUBLIQUE SLOVAQUE 
  Le présent document contient le texte
1 actualisé de la Loi n° 55/1997 Coll. sur les marques 
(voir le document IP/N/1/SVK/T/3) modifiée pa r la Loi n° 577/2001 Coll. (voir le document 
IP/N/1/SVK/T/4) et par la Loi n° 14/2004 Coll., notifiée par la République slovaque au titre de 
l'article 63:2 de l'Accord au moyen d'une communication de sa délégation datée du 15 juin 2004.    
 
Consejo de los Aspectos de los Derechos de Propiedad 
Intelectual relacionados con el Comercio  
  
PRINCIPALES LEYES Y REGLAMENTOS DEDICADOS A LA 
PROPIEDAD INTELECTUAL NOTIFICADOS EN VIRTUD 
DEL PÁRRAFO 2 DEL ARTÍCULO 63 DEL ACUERDO 
 
REPÚBLICA ESLOVACA 
 
 En el presente documento se reproduce el texto refundido
1 de la Ley Nº 55/1997 Recop. de 
Marcas de Fábrica o de Comercio (véase el docum ento IP/N/1/SVK/T/3), modificada por la Ley 
Nº 577/2001 Recop. (véase el documento IP/N/1/SVK/T/4) y por la Ley Nº 14/2004 Recop., que la República Eslovaca ha notificado en virtud del párra fo 2 del artículo 63 del Acuerdo mediante una 
comunicación de su delegaci ón de fecha 15 de junio 2004. 
                                                     
 
 1 In English only./En anglais seulement./En inglés solamente. IP/N/1/SVK/T/5 
Page 2  
 
 Consolidated TEXT 
 
Act No. 55/1997 Coll. on Trademarks 
 
as amended by the Act No. 577/2001 Coll. and by the Act No. 14/2004 Coll. 
 
National Council of the Slovak Republic  has adopted the following Act: 
 
PART I 
GENERAL PROVISIONS 
 
Trademark 
Article 1 
 
(1) A trademark is any sign capable of being re presented graphically, co nsisting particularly 
of words, including personal names, letters, num erals, drawings, shape of goods or of their 
packaging, or their mutual combinations capable  of distinguishing goods or services of one 
person from the goods and services of other person, registered in  the Register of Trademarks 
(hereinafter referred to  as "the Register"). 
 (2) A collective trademark is a sign referred to in Paragraph 1 thereof,  if it is capable of 
distinguishing products or services, originated by members of a legal entity established for 
the purpose of protection of  their interests or for other purpo ses (hereinafter referred to as 
"association
1" from goods or services provided by ot her persons and which is registered in 
the Register. 
 
Article 2 
 
(1) The following shall not be recognised as a trademark:  a) sign which does not conform to  the requirements of Article 1, 
 b) sign which has no distinctive capacity,  c) sign consisting exclusively of indications or elements that serve in the trade to designate 
the kind, quality, quantity, purpose, value, geogra phical origin or othe r characteristics of 
goods or services or, if appropria te, time of production of goods or of rendering of services, 
 d) sign consisting exclusively of signs or indications whic h have become customary in 
current language or have been using in established practices of trade, 
 e) sign consisting exclusively of the shapes of goods or of their packaging which results from 
the nature of goods themselves or is necessary to  obtain a technical result, or gives substantial 
value to the goods,  f) sign which is of such a nature as to decei ve the public, particularly with regard to the 
nature, quality or geographical or igin of the goods  or services, 
  IP/N/1/SVK/T/5 
 Page 3 
 
 
 g) sign which is contrary to public  order or principles of morality, 
 h) sign whose use would be contrary to the obligations of the Slovak Republic under 
international treaties,  i) sign containing a sign of a high symbolic value, particularly a religious symbol, 
 j) sign applied for wines or sp irits containing a geographical indication identifying wines or 
spirits with respect to such wines or spirits not having that origin, 
 k) which is the subject of the applicat ion which has not been filed in good faith. 
 (2) The signs referred to in paragraph 1 (b) to (d) may be accepted and registered in the 
Register if a natural person or a legal entity f iling an application for registration (hereinafter 
referred to as "Applicant") prove s that such sign has acquired di stinctive character in relation 
to the goods or services for which registration is requested following the use which has been 
made of it on the territory of the Slovak Republic or  in relation to this te rritory prior the date 
of filing of the application fo r the entry in the Register (hereinafter referred to as 
"Application"). 
 
Article 3 
 
(1) The following shall not be recognised as the trademark:  a) sign identical with the trademark with the ea rlier priority right which has been registered 
for another owner for iden tical goods or services, 
 b) sign identical with applied sign of anothe r applicant with the earlier priority right 
provided that such sign is register ed for identical goods or services, 
 c) sign identical with a trademark registered for identical or similar goods or services that has 
expired under Article 15 (1)(a ) if the application was file d within two years after the 
expiration date of the trademark; this provision shall not apply if the application was filed by 
the person who at the time of the expiration of the trademark thereof has been registered as 
the owner of the trademark or its legal successor.  (2) Provisions of paragraph 1 shal l not apply if the owner of the earlier trademark or applicant 
of the identical sign with the earlier priority ri ght gives his written cons ent to the registration 
of later sign. 
 
Article 3a 
Identity and similarity of signs or trad emarks and identity of goods or services 
 
(1) Signs or trademarks, which are identical or  differ only in inessential elements, which do 
not change the character of the sign or tradem ark as a whole shall be deemed identical. 
 (2) Signs or trademarks and goods or services shall be deemed similar if because of this 
similarity there exists a likeli hood of confusion of signs or tr ademarks or goods or services IP/N/1/SVK/T/5 
Page 4  
 
 originating from different persons  or there exists the likelihood of association with the sign or 
trademark with the earli er priority right on the part of the public. 
 
Article 4 
 
(1) The sign shall not be recognised as a tr ademark where the Industr ial Property Office of 
the Slovak Republic (hereinafter referred to as  "the Office"), on the grounds of oppositions 
filed pursuant to Article 9, ascertains that it is : 
 a) identical with a trademark with the earlier priority right if the trademark has been 
registered for similar goods or services, or conf usingly similar to a trademark if the trademark 
has been registered for identical  or similar goods and services, 
 b) identical with an applied si gn with the earlier priority ri ght provided that such sign is 
registered for similar goods or services, or conf usingly similar to a trademark with the earlier 
priority right provided that such  sign is registered for identical  or similar goods or services, 
 c) identical with or confusingl y similar to a trademark with the earlier priority right which has 
acquired reputation in the Slovak Republic if the use of such sign for goods and services, 
which are not similar to those for which the earli er trademark has been registered, would take 
unfair advantage of, or be detrimental to, the di stinctive character or th e repute of the earlier 
trademark,  
d) identical with or confusingly similar to a sign which is registered as a trademark for 
identical or similar goods or serv ices in the country or in rela tion to the country which is the 
member state of the international convention
1a) or is a member of the World Trade 
Organization1b) (hereinafter referred to as "Foreign tr ademark”) provided that the applicant of 
this sign is an agent or a repres entative of the owner of the fo reign trademark for the territory 
of the Slovak Republic on the basis of other relation1c) (hereinafter referred to as 
"Representative”) and applies for registration thereof in his own name without the owner's 
consent,  e) identical with or confusingl y similar to an unregistered sign which in the course of trade 
prior to the filing date of the application has acquired distinctive character for identical or 
similar goods or services of its owner and where such sign is not of a mere local significance, 
 f) identical with or confusingly similar to the trade name or its essential part, registered in the 
Register of Companies or a si milar register for an entrepreneur who conducted an economic 
activity with identical or similar goods or servi ces prior to the filing da te of the application, 
 g) identical with or confusingl y similar to the forename and surname or an assumed name or 
a portrait of a person if the entry of this sign in the Register c ould interfere with the ights to 
individual’s protection,  h) identical with or confusingl y similar to the subject matter of  other industrial property ight 
with the earlier priority right,  i) identical with or confusingl y similar to an author's work created prior to filing date of  IP/N/1/SVK/T/5 
 Page 5 
 
 
 the application where by using such sign th e author's copyright could be affected. 
 (2) The sign shall not be recognised as a trademark where Office on the grounds of 
oppositions filed pursuant to Ar ticle 9, ascertains that it is : 
 
a) identical with or confusingl y similar to a sign which, before filing date of the application, 
had become well-known, following its use in the Slovak Republic or in relation to the 
territory of the Slovak Republic acco rding to the international treaty2, for goods or services of 
its owner (hereinafter referred to as "Unregistered well-known ma rk"), if this sign is applied 
for identical or simila r goods or services, 
 b) identical with or confusingly similar to an unregistered well-known mark, if the use of 
such sign for any goods or services would i ndicate connection between the thus-marked 
goods or services and the owner of the unregistered well-known mark, and if the interests of 
its owner are likely to be damaged by such use.  (3) The sign shall furthermore not be recogni sed as a trademark where the Office, on the 
basis of oppositions filed pursuan t to Article 9, ascertains that  it is identical with or 
confusingly similar to an earlier Community trademark
2a), which has a reputation in the 
Community, if the use of such sign for goods or  services, which, however, are not similar to 
those for which the earlier Community tradem ark with a reputation has been registered, 
would take unfair advantage of, or be detrimenta l to, the distinctive character or the repute of 
the earlier Community trademark. 
 
PART II 
PROCEDURE ON MATTERS CONCERNING A TRADEMARK 
 
Article 5 
Trademark Application 
 
(1) The trademark application shall be  filed by applicant at the Office. 
 (2) An application shall contain:  a) a request for the entry of the sign as a trademark in the Register, name, surname and 
domicile if the applicant is a natural person, and name or trade name and seat if the applicant 
is a legal entity,  b) a wording or graphical presentation of the sign; in case of a three-dimensional sign its 
surface presentation,  c) list of the goods or services in resp ect of which the registration is requested. 
 (3) Goods or services included in the list under paragraph 2 (c) shall be classified in 
accordance with the in ternational treaty.
3 
 (4) The application can be filed for one sign only. 
 IP/N/1/SVK/T/5 
Page 6  
 
 Article 6 
Priority right 
 
(1) For the purpose of starting the proceedings and the rise of priority right the filing date of 
the application shall be deemed the date of  delivery of the submission or the date of 
elimination of deficiencies of su bmission, which contains at least: 
 a) data indicating the express intention of the applicant to file a trademark application, 
 b) data enabling identificati on of the applicant and corres pondence with the applicant, 
 c) requirements in accordance with Article 5 (2)(b) and (c) except the classification referred 
to in Article 5 (3).  (2) The applicant shall enjoy the priority righ t against any person who subsequently files an 
application containing identical or confusingly similar sign for identical or similar goods or 
services  a) on the filing date of the appli cation according to paragraph 1 or 
 b) on the date of priority right pu rsuant to intern ational convention 
1a) following from the 
earlier trademark application.  (3) The applicant must claim the priority right according to paragraph 2(b) in the application 
and prove this right within th e period of three months as from the date of filing of 
application; otherwise the right of priority shall not be recognised. 
 (4) The priority right according to paragraph 2(b) shall be  applied to one application only, 
provided that this application is filed in the state which is the member state of the 
international convention
1a) or is a member of the World Trade Organization1b) ; otherwise this 
right may be claimed only if the condition of reciprocity is fulfilled.  (5) The priority right pursuant to para graph 2(b) applies also to services. 
 
Article 7 
Modification of the application, assi gnment and transfer of the application 
 
(1) Upon the request of the applicant the Offi ce shall permit modification of the application 
where it concerns the forename, surname or na me, or the trade name, seat, domicile and 
business address if a change occurred after filing of the application and the modification of 
the application for registration reconciles data adduced therein with reality without affecting 
the general nature of the trademark. No other ch anges in the application after its filing shall 
be permitted. If a filed sign is modified afte r publishing of the application, the application 
shall be published again with modified sign.  (2) After filing of the applica tion the applicant may reduce the list of goods or services for 
which the trademark is to be registered; such reduction cannot be withdrawn. No extension of  IP/N/1/SVK/T/5 
 Page 7 
 
 
 the list of goods or services for which the tr ademark is to be registered after filing of 
application is permitted. 
 
(3) Prior to the entry of the trademark in the Re gister the applicant is entitled to divide the 
application containing more than  one kind of goods or services to separate applications. The 
priority right and the date of  filing of application of the original application shall be 
maintained also for the divisional applica tions, provided they only include the goods or 
services listed in the original application.  (4) By written agreement the applicant may assi gn his right arising from the application for 
the goods or services which are listed in the application, or for part of them, to another 
natural person or legal entity if these goods or services constitute the subject of his economic 
activity as of the date of the agreement.  (5) Rights following from application shall be tr ansferred to another pe rson in cases stated by 
special Act
4. 
 
Article 8 
Examination and Publication of the Application 
 
(1) The Office shall conduct an examination whether the application complies with the 
conditions laid down by this Act and its implementing regulation.4a) 
 
(2) If the application does not sa tisfy the conditions according to Ar ticle 5(2) to (4), as well as 
specified by the implementing regulation, the Office shall invite the applicant to eliminate the 
deficiencies within a prescribed period of tim e. If the applicant fails to eliminate those 
deficiencies within the prescribed period of tim e, the Office shall suspend the procedure. The 
notice asking to eliminate the deficiencies must  advise the applicant in advance about this. 
 (3) If the applied sign does not satisfy with c onditions according to Articles 1 to 3, the Office 
shall refuse the application. Before taking th is decision the Office shall require from the 
applicant the statement concerning the reasons on the basis of which the application is to be 
refused.  (4) If the reasons on the basis of  which the application is to be  refused according to paragraph 
3 concern only the part of goods or services, th e Office shall refuse the application only for 
this part of goods or services.  (5) If the proceeding on application was not su spended according to paragraph 2 or if the 
application was not refused according to paragr aph 3, the Office shall publish the application 
in the Official Journal of th e Industrial Property Office of th e Slovak Republic (hereinafter 
referred to as "Journal"). 
 
Article 8a 
Observations 
 
(1) Before the entry of the trademark in the Register, any person may submit observations in 
the written form to the Office on the grounds of fulfilling the conditions of Article 2 and 3; IP/N/1/SVK/T/5 
Page 8  
 
 the Office shall take into account  the observations in proceedi ngs leading to the decision on 
the entry of the trademark in the Register. The person who submitted the observations will not become a party to the proceedings.  (2) The Office shall communicate the observations  to the applicant who may comment them 
within prescribed period of time. The Office shall inform both the applicant and the person 
who submitted the observations  about the results of the assessment of observations. 
 
Oppositions against the Entry in the Register 
Article 9 
 
After publishing the applic ation in the Journal, a person, aff ected due to reasons stated in 
Article 4 (hereinafter referred to as “Opponent”) , may file oppositions against the entry of the 
sign in the Register within the period of three months from this  publication at the Office. The 
oppositions shall contain legal and factual justification as well the documentary evidence or 
indication of documentary or other eviden ce, which shall be submitted by the opponent. 
 
Article 10 
 
(1) The Office shall examine whether the oppositions have been filed duly and in time according to Article 9 and whether the conditions  of obligatory repres entation according to 
Article 34 (3) is satisfied.  (2) If the oppositions have not been filed duly and in time according to Article 9 or if the 
opponent does not submit the indicated eviden ce upon the invitation of the Office within 
prescribed time period or does not prove th e satisfaction of the condition of obligatory 
representation according to Arti cle 34 (3) upon the invitation of the Office within prescribed 
time period, the Office shall suspend the opposition proceedings.  (3) The Office shall advise the applicant of  the oppositions filed pursuant to Article 9, 
proceedings on which were not suspended, and invites him to make a statement related to the oppositions within the prescribed time period.  (4) If the applicant fails to make a statement regarding the oppositions within the prescribed 
time period according to paragraph 3 or fails  to satisfy the condition of obligatory 
representation according to Arti cle 34 (3) upon the invitation of the Office within prescribed 
time period, the Office shall suspend the applic ation proceedings to the extent of the 
oppositions filed. The applicant must be, however , warned about this in the invitation to 
make a statement.  
(5) The Office shall deliver a written text of  the decision according to paragraph 2 to the 
opponent and a written text of the decision accord ing to paragraph 4 to both the opponent and 
the applicant.  (6) The Office shall suspend the opposition proceedings, if the reason for which the 
opposition has been filed vanished. The Office shall deliver both to the applicant and the opponent the decision on suspension of the opposition proceedings. 
  IP/N/1/SVK/T/5 
 Page 9 
 
 
 Article 11 
 
(1) The Office shall examine, on the basis of  the oppositions with regard to which the 
applicant made a statement, whether an applie d sign satisfies the conditions for registration 
with respect to Article 4.  (2) If the Office in the proceedings according to the paragraph 1 on the basis of evidence 
evaluated on the proposal of the parties  a) ascertains that the applied sign does not satisfy requirements fo r registration with respect to 
Article 4, it shall refu se the application or 
 b) does not ascertain the existence of the grounds with respect to Article 4 or ascertains that 
the opponent is not a person affected according to  Article 9, it shall refuse the oppositions. 
 (3) If the reasons for refusal of the applica tion according to paragraph 2 (a) concern only 
some of the goods or services, the Office shall re fuse the application in respect of those goods 
or services.  (4) The Office shall deliver a written text of th e decision according to paragraph 2 to both the 
applicant and the opponent. 
 
Article 12 
Registration of a Trademark 
 
(1) If the requirements laid down for registrati on of a sing as a tradem ark in the Register by 
this Act, are satisfied, the Office sha ll enter the trademark in the Register. 
 (2) By entering the trademark in the Register the applicant acquires the trademark rights and 
becomes the owner of the trademark and the Offi ce shall issue a certificat e of registration to 
the owner.  (3) The Office shall publish the registrati on of the trademark in the Journal. 
 (4) Legal or natural person entered as the owner in the Register shall be deemed the owner of 
the trademark. 
 
Article 13 
Term of Protection 
 
(1) The term of protection for a registered trad emark is ten years as fr om filing date of the 
application with the Office (Article 6 (1)).  (2) At the request of the trademark owner for renewal of a registration submitted at the earliest during the final year of th e term of protection and at the latest within six months after 
its expiry (hereinafter referred to as "Request for registration renewal") the term of protection 
of the trademark shall be repeatedly  extended for additional ten years. 
 IP/N/1/SVK/T/5 
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 Article 14 
Modification of a Trademark and of List of Goods and Services 
 
(1) At the request of the tr ademark owner the Office sha ll permit modification of the 
trademark where it concerns the forename, surnam e or name, or trade name or seat, domicile, 
trade establishment if this change occurred afte r the entry of the trademark in the Register 
and if this modification reconciles data addu ced therein with reality without affecting the 
general nature of the trademark.  (2) Upon the request of the trademark owner the Office shall reduce the list of goods or 
services for which the trademark is regist ered; such reduction cannot be withdrawn. No 
extension of the list of goods or services fo r which the trademark is registered is permitted 
 
Article 15 
Termination of a Trademark 
 
(1) A trademark is terminated:  a) on the expiry of the term of  protection, unless an request fo r registration renewal was filed 
in due time,  b) on the day of the declarat ion of renunciation to the right made by the owner of the 
trademark presented to the Office, this statement has no legal effects if rights of a third party 
hinder the declarat ion of renunciation. 
 c) on the effectiveness of the revocation of th e trademark according to Article 16 (3) to (13), 
Article 17 and Article 23.  (2) A trademark which is the subject to the rights of third party will cease  to exist pursuant to 
paragraph 1 (b) on the day when the trademark owner provides proof of termination of these 
rights or, the approval of the authorised pers ons with the termination of the trademark. 
 (3) The Office enters the termination of a trademark in the Register. 
 
Invalidation and Revocation of a Trademark 
Article 16 
 
(1) The Office shall declare the registration of  a trademark invalid if it ascertains in the 
proceedings started at the request of a thir d party or ex-officio that the trademark was 
registered contrary to the condi tions laid down by this Act for registration of trademarks. 
 
(2) The declaration of trademark registration invalid pursuant to paragraph 1 shall not 
proceed if the trademark has been registered cont rary to Article 2 (1) (b) to (d) but its owner 
proves that such trademark has acquired distin ctive character in relation to the goods or 
services for which it was registered followi ng the use which has been made of it on the 
territory of the Slovak Republic or in relation to this territory prior the start of the invalidation 
proceedings.   IP/N/1/SVK/T/5 
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 (3) The Office shall revoke the registration of a trademark if in the proceedings started at the 
request of a third party or ex o fficio it ascertains that the trad emark in consequence of use of 
it by its owner or with his consent is liable to mi slead the public, particular ly as to the nature, 
quality or geographical origin of the goods or services for which it is registered. 
 (4) The Office shall revoke the registration of a trademark if in the proceedings started at the 
request of a third party it as certains that the trademark has not been used in the Slovak 
Republic for at least five consecutive years pr eceding the start of revocation proceedings and 
the trademark owner has not given proper reasons  for non-use. Trademark is deemed not to 
be used during five consecutive years on the territory of the Slovak Republic unless proved 
otherwise. Trademark shall not be revoked if the owner started to use it in good faith after the 
expiry of five consecutive years; starting to use the trademark in good faith within the time 
limit of three months preceding th e filing of the request for re vocation shall not be deemed 
starting to use the trademark in good faith, unless proved otherwise. 
 (5) The Office shall revoke the registration of identical trademark if, during the proceedings 
started at the request of the owner of the tradem ark with the earlier priority right, it ascertains 
that the contested trademark has been registered for similar goods  or services, or, the Office 
shall revoke the registration of confusingly similar trademark if, during the proceedings 
started at the request of the owner of the tradem ark with the earlier priority right, it ascertains 
that the contested trademark has been registered for identical or similar goods or services. 
 (6) The Office shall revoke the registration of a trademark if, in the proceedings started at the 
request of the owner of trademark with the earlier priority right, which has acquired a 
reputation in the Slovak Republic, it ascertains that the use of  the contested trademark for 
goods or services, which are not similar to t hose for which the earlier trademark has been 
registered, would take unfair adva ntage of, or be detrimental to, the distinctive character or 
the repute of the earlier trademark.  (7) The Office shall revoke the registration of a trademark if in the proceedings started at the 
request of the owner of a unreg istered or registered well-known mark it ascertains that the 
contested trademark is  a) identical or confusingly similar to unregis tered well known mark which, before filing date 
of the application of the cont ested trademark, had become well -known (Article 4 (2)(a)) for 
identical or similar goods or services or  b) identical with, or confusi ngly similar to, an unregistered well known mark which, before 
filing date of the application of the conteste d trademark, had become well-known (Article 4 
(2)(b)) if the use of such trademark for any goods or services woul d indicate connection 
between the thus-marked goods or services a nd the owner of the unr egistered well-known 
mark, and if the interests of its owner are likely to  be damaged by such use. 
 (8) The Office, on the basis of the proposal of the user of an unregistered sign, shall revoke 
the registration of trademark id entical with or confusingly si milar to the un registered sign 
which in the course of trade prior to the filing date of the contested trademark application has 
acquired distinctive character for identical or sim ilar goods or services, if such sign is not of a 
mere local significance. IP/N/1/SVK/T/5 
Page 12  
 
  
(9) The Office shall revoke the registration of a trademark if in the proceedings started at the 
request of a third party it ascertains that the tr ademark, as a result of use or failure to use by 
its owner, has lost its distin ctive character because in the trade relations it has become a 
general designation for goods or services  for which it has been registered. 
 (10) The Office shall revoke the registration of a identical or c onfusingly similar trademark if 
in the proceedings started at th e request of an entrepreneur ascertains that the trademark is 
identical with or confusingly similar to the trad e name or its essential part, registered in the 
Register of Companies or a similar register  for such entrepreneur if he conducted an 
economic activity with identical or similar goods or services prior to the filing date of the 
application of contested trademark.  (11) The Office shall revoke the registration of a identical or c onfusingly similar trademark if 
in the proceedings started at the request of third party ascer tains that the trademark is 
identical with or confusingly similar to the fo rename and surname or an assumed name or a 
portrait of a person use of this  sign in the Register could interfere with the rights to 
individual’s protection.  (12) The Office shall revoke the registration of an identical or  confusingly similar trademark 
if in the proceedings started at the request of  the owner of another industrial property right 
ascertains that the contested trademark is identic al with or confusingly similar to the subject 
matter of other industrial property right  with the earlier priority right. 
 
(13) The Office shall revoke the registration of a identical or c onfusingly similar trademark if 
in the proceedings started at the request of third party ascer tains that the trademark is 
identical with or confusingly similar to an auth or's work created prior to filing date of the 
application of contested trademark if by usi ng such sign the author's  copyright could be 
affected.  (14) If the reasons for revocation of the registra tion of a trademark refer solely to one part of 
the goods or services for which the trademark ha s been registered, the Office shall revoke the 
registration of a trademark onl y for those goods or services. 
 (15) File a request for invalidation of regist ration of a trademark pur suant to paragraphs 1 
may also be affected after the termination of the trademark pursuant to Article 15 (1)(a) to (c) 
if the claimant proves legal interest.  (16) The Office shall not revoke the registration according to pa ragraphs 5 to 8 if the owner 
of the right:  a) has acquiesced for a period of five consecu tive years the use of contested trademark on 
the territory of the Slovak Republic since the mo ment he was aware of such use; it shall not 
apply if the owner of the right proves that the application of conteste d trademark was applied 
for in bad faith or   IP/N/1/SVK/T/5 
 Page 13 
 
 
 b) has not used the trademark registered or  unregistered well-known mark or unregistered 
sign on the territory of the Slovak Republic fo r five consecutive years and has not given 
proper reasons for such non-use.  (17) The Office shall revoke the registration of a trademark if, in the proceedings started at 
the request of the owner of the Community trademark2a), it ascertains that the contested trademark is identical with, or confusingly si milar to, an earlier Community trademark and 
has been registered for goods or services whic h are not similar to those for which the earlier 
Community trademark is registered, where the earlier Community trademark has a reputation 
in the Community and where the use of such trademark without due cause would take unfair 
advantage of, or be detrimental to, the distin ctive character or the repute of the earlier 
Community trademark. 
 
Article 17 
 
(1) The Office shall revoke registration of a trademark on the grounds of the court decision 
according to which the trademark  a) containing the forename and surname or a portrait of a natural person, or his assumed 
name, violates the rights to  individual’s protection, 
 b) containing the name or trade name of a natu ral person or a legal entity, registered in the 
Register of Companies or a simila r register prior to filing of the application, interferes with its 
reputation,  c) interferes with the earlier copyright.  (2) The Office shall revoke the registration of an  identical or a confusingly similar trademark 
on the basis of a court decision according to whic h the use of such trademark is prohibited as 
an act of unfair competition
1d). 
 (3) The revocation shall be proceeded at the request of an authorised person within six 
months from the date when th e court decision becomes valid. 
 
Article 18 
 
In case of invalidation of regist ration of a trademark pursuant to  Article 16 (1) the registration 
of this trademark in the Register shall be deemed to have never occurred; otherwise the 
revocation shall be effective from the da te of starting the revocation proceedings. 
 
Article 18a 
Specific Provision Concerning Effects of Revocation 
 
(1) Effects of the trademark revocation shall not concern:  a) any decision on infringement of trademark ri ght which had become effective and had been 
implemented prior to the entry into  effect of the revocation decision, 
 IP/N/1/SVK/T/5 
Page 14  
 
 b) any contract concluded prior to  the entry into effect of the revocation decision, in so far as 
it had been performed before the entry into effect of that deci sion; however, repayment to an 
extent justified by the contract may be claimed.  (2) The provision of paragraph 1 is without pr ejudice to the responsibility of the trademark 
owner for the damage or unjust enrichment. 
 
Article 19 
 
Together with the request for starting of the invalidation or revocation proceedings pursuant 
to Article 16 the claimant is requested to deposit a sum of 2 500 SK. The Office will refund 
the deposit if in the proceedings  it shall be proved that the st arting of the invalidation or 
revocation proceedings has been filed with proper reason. 
 
Specific Provision Concerning Collective Trademarks 
Article 20 
 
(1) An association , as an applicant, can file the application for the re gistration of a sign as 
collective trademark.  (2) Together with the application in addition to the formalities referred to in Article 5 (2) and 
 (3), the following must be attached: 
 
a) the written contract between all members of the association , in which the conditions of the 
use of the collective trademark are laid down, including the sanc tions for their infringement, 
 b) a list of members of the association who are entitled to use the collective trademark and 
the address of their seats.  (3) The provisions of Articles 5 to 19, as appropriate, govern the proceedings concerning the 
collective trademark. 
 
Article 21 
 
(1) The members of an associati on registered in the Register ha ve the exclusive right to mark 
with the collective trademark thei r goods or services for which it is registered or to use it in 
connection with these goods or services. 
 (2) At the request of the ow ner of the collective trademar k supported with an agreement 
amending the original association agreement, th e Office shall enter the change regarding the 
list of the members of the association in the Register.  (3) At the request of the members of an associ ation , the Office will issu e an extract to each 
of the members of the associati on registered in  the Register. 
 (4) At the request the Office shall permit th e inspection of the association agreement. 
  IP/N/1/SVK/T/5 
 Page 15 
 
 
 Article 22 
 
A collective trademark shall not be assigned to another owner and shall not be licensed or 
given as lien. 
 
Article 23 
 
The Office shall revoke a collective trademark fr om the Register, except in the cases referred 
to in Articles 16 and 17 thereof, if the memb ers of the association seriously violate the 
agreement on the use of the collective trademark. 
 
PART III 
RIGHTS AND OBLIGATIONS IN TRADEMARKS 
 
Rights of Trademark Owners 
Article 24 
 
(1) A trademark owner has the exclusive right to affix his goods or services with the 
trademark for which it is registered or use it  in connection with t hose goods or services. 
 (2) A trademark owner is authorised to use the "®" mark with the trademark. 
 
Article 25 
 
(1) Without the authorisation of the trademark owner no one may use a sign that is identical 
with, or confusingly similar, to his trademark for identical or simila r goods or services for 
which the trademark has been registered, nor th e sign that is identical  with or confusingly 
similar to his trademark for goods or services, wh ich are not similar to goods and services for 
which the trademark has been registered, but th e later trademark has acquired reputation in 
the Slovak Republic and the use of such sign would take unfair advantage of, or be 
detrimental to, the distinctive character or th e repute of the trademark. Accordingly, no one 
may use this sign in connection with these goods  or services, in particular, affix it on goods 
or their packaging, offer or introduce on the mark et thus marked goods or packaging, or store 
them for this purpose, import or export goods or  their packaging with this sign or use this 
sign in the trade, corres pondence or advertising. 
 (2) The trademark owner is en titled to require information about the origin of goods or 
documents accompanying the goods or services from everybody introducing or intending to introduce on the market goods or services whic h are marked with a sign identical with or 
confusingly similar to his trademark. Th e trademark owner shall prove his rights by 
presenting the registration certificate or an extract from the Register. 
 (3) The trademark owner is authorised to re quire from the publisher of a publication where 
his trademark is reproduced to publish a stat ement that it is a trademark, including the 
registration number of the trademark. 
 
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 Article 26 
 
(1) The trademark owner may request from any one  to refrain from the use of his trademark 
or sign confusingly similar to his trademark for identical or similar goods  or services and may 
request that thus marked items  be withdrawn from market. 
 (2) The owner of a well-known trademark register ed in the Register may enforce his rights 
under paragraph 1 thereof regardless of identity  or similarity of the goods or services, 
provided that use of that trad emark in relation to other goods or services would indicate a 
connection between thus marked goods or se rvices, and the owner of the registered 
wellknown trademark and provided that the intere sts of the owner are likely to be damaged 
by such use.  (3) If the violation of the trad emark rights resulted in damage, the injured party is entitled to 
have his damage compensated. If such viola tion should result in non-pecuniary injury the 
injured party is entitled to claim reasonable sa tisfaction that may have a form of pecuniary 
settlement.  (4) Disputes arising from legal situations in respect of trademarks shall be heard and decided 
by the courts. 
 
Article 26a 
 
(1) On proposal the court is entitled to order that products, materials or instruments through 
which the infringement or jeopard ising of right protected by this Act is directly conducted be 
 a) disposed of outside th e channels of commerce, 
 b) rendered to plaintiff,  c) otherwise secured by a method preventing furthe r infringement or jeopa rdising of the right; 
the simple removal of the sign unlawfully affi xed shall not be deemed to be the remedy 
preventing from the further infringement of right,  d) destroyed in a suitable manner at the cost  of the person infringing the right, unless a more 
appropriate solution is available.  (2) The proposal of the plaintiff pursuant to pa ragraph 1(d) in the part  related to the manner 
of destruction of objects shall not be binding for the court. 
 
(3) The court shall not grant the right to submittin g the data pursuant to Article 25(2), if the 
seriousness of jeopardising or infringing the right  is disproportionate to  the seriousness of 
consequences following from the fulfilment of obligation imposed in this manner. 
 
Article 26b 
 
(1) When protecting the rights pursuant to this  Act, a court by means of preliminary ruling
4b) 
is entitled to impose obligations identical in content with decision on the matter as such in  IP/N/1/SVK/T/5 
 Page 17 
 
 
 case any delay may cause the entitled party damage that can be repaired only with 
difficulties, or non-pecuniary injury.  (2) Within a preliminary ruling the court is also  ex officio entitled to impose on the plaintiff 
an obligation to deposit a fina ncial security in a reasonable amount, or it is entitled to 
condition the effectiveness of the decision by fulfilment of the imposed obligation. When 
making a decision on the amount of the financial security, the court sh all take into account 
the scope of pecuniary or non-pecuniary injury wh ich can occur to the counterpart, as well as 
to the financial situation of the plaintiff, where the imposition of the obligation to deposit a financial security shall not create a substantial obstacle for effective enforcement of the right. 
 (3) On proposal the court is en titled to decide upon releasing the financial security to the 
counterpart, as compensation of pecuniary inju ry or satisfaction of  non-pecuniary injury 
caused directly by the enforcem ent of the injunction decision without a reasonable title. 
 (4) If within a time limit of six months from th e finding of the injury pu rsuant to paragraph 3, 
the claim to compensation is not exercised before the court or if no agreem ent of the parties is 
reached on the use of the financial security, th e court shall return th e financial security. 
 
Article 27 
Limitations of Trademark Rights 
 
(1) The trademark owner has no right to prohibit  to a third party to use the trademark on the 
goods which have been introduced on the market marked with such trademark by the owner himself or with his consent.  (2) The trademark owner has no right to prohibit  to a third party to use the trademark on the 
goods which have been introduced on the mark et of a Community Member State or other 
state of the European Economic Area marked w ith such trademark by the owner himself or 
with his consent.  (3) The provisions of paragraphs 1 and 2 do not apply if, after having brought the goods on 
the market, an essential change or deterior ation of the state or properties of the goods 
occurred without the owner’s fault. 
 
Article 28 
Obligations in Trademarks 
 
(1) The trademark owner shall be  obliged to use the trademar k, in particular on goods and on 
their packaging or commercial documents; in  promotional, adve rtising and publicity 
materials, in strict compliance with the form in  which it was entered in the Register, or in the 
form differing only in elements that do not ch ange its distinctive capacity. The use of a 
trademark by a third party on the basis of an agreement is considered as the use of the 
trademark by its owner.  (2) The trademark owner is  obliged to tolerate 
 a) if a third party uses, in commercial rela tions, the own forename, surname, address or IP/N/1/SVK/T/5 
Page 18  
 
 indication concerning the kind, qua lity, quantity, purpose, value, ge ographical origin, date of 
production of goods or providing of services, or other characteristics of goods or services 
despite the fact that they are identical with or  confusingly similar to the owner’s trademark or 
create a part thereof; provided that the indi cations thereof are used in accordance with 
practices of the trade and good morals of economic competition,  b) if a third party uses, in commercial relations, a sign identical with or confusingly similar to 
the owner’s trademark if it is  necessary for the designati on of the purpose of the goods, 
mainly of their accessories or spare parts, or  kind of services, provide d that it is used in 
compliance with practices of the trad e and good morals of economic competition, 
 c) if an user of an unregistere d sign of a mere local significan ce uses, in commercial relations, 
in the same extent, an identic al or confusingly similar unr egistered sign, where such use 
started before filing date of trademark application. 
 
Article 29 
Assignment and Transfer of Trademarks 
 
(1) The owner of a trademark may assign his tr ademark by a written contract to a natural 
person or a legal entity for all or part of the goods  or services for which it has been registered. 
 (2) A trademark is transferred to a new ow ner in cases given by special regulations.
4) 
 
(3) The contract on the assignment of the tradem ark and transfer of a trademark enters into 
force vis-à-vis third parties on the day of its en try in the Register. The acquirer must request 
this entry. 
 
Article 30 
License 
 
(1) The right to use a trademark may be granted under th e licensing contract5 in respect of all 
or part of the goods or services for which the tr ademark has been registered or only for a part 
thereof.  (2) The licensing contract enters into force vis- à-vis third parties on the day of its entry in the 
Register. The trademark owne r must request this entry. 
 (3) The licensing contract that provides for the right to use the sign that  is the subject of the 
trademark application shall be deemed to be th e licensing contract prov iding the right to use 
the trademark after the sign is registered, unless the parties to the licensing contract agreed 
otherwise. 
 
Lien on a Trademark 
Article 31 
 
(1) A trademark is possible to lien 
6. 
  IP/N/1/SVK/T/5 
 Page 19 
 
 
  (2) The right of lien on a trademark enters into  force on the day of its entry in the Register. 
The entry of the trademark lien must be request ed by the lienor. Together with the request for 
the entry of the right of lien in the Register the lienor is obliged to submit to the Office the 
lien agreement with officially certified signatures of the parties. 
 
Article 32 
Forfeiture of trademark and recti fication of trademark owner 
 
The Office, on proposal, shall forfeit the trademark from the trademark owner entered in the Register and shall enter the person who pr oposes it as trademark owner provided that 
 a) the proposal has been filed by a owner of  the foreign trademark (Article 4 (1)(d)), 
 b) trademark is identical or c onfusingly similar to the foreign trademark and is registered for 
the identical or simila r goods or services, 
 c) the foreign trademark was registered pursuant to letter (a) before filing of the application 
of the trademark and  d) the trademark owner was at th e time of filing of application the representative (Article 
4 (1)(d)) of the owner of the foreign trademark and filed th e trademark application in 
his name without the consent of th e owner of the foreign trademark. 
 
Article 33 
Specific Rights and Obligations  in Collective Trademarks 
 
(1) The owner of a collective trademark has ri ghts and obligations with respect to that 
trademark in the extent as referred to in Arti cles 24 to 32 unless otherwise provided by the 
Act.  (2) The members of an association have the ri ghts under paragraph 1 thereof to the extent 
provided in agreement.  (3) The members of an association in pursuing their economic activities are entitled to mark 
goods or services also with their registered tr ademark, or with the trademark that they have 
the right to use on the basi s of the licensing contract. 
 
PART IV 
RELATIONS WITH FOREIGN COUNTRIES, 
INTERNATIONAL REGISTRATION OF TRADEMARKS 
 
Article 34 
Relations with Foreign Countries 
 
(1) The provisions of internat ional treaties, agreements and conventions by which the Slovak 
Republic is bound, are not affected by this Act. 
 
(2) Person who have their residence or seat in  the territory of the member state of the IP/N/1/SVK/T/5 
Page 20  
 
 international treaty1a) or in the territory of the member  state of World Trade Organization1b) 
shall have the same rights and obligations as th e domestic applicants or trademark owners; if 
the state in which the persons have the reside nce or seat is not the member state of the 
international treaty1a) or in the territory of the member  state of World Trade Organization1b) 
rights and obligations pursuant to this Act is possible to recognise only if the reciprocity 
condition is met.  (3) An authorised representative must represen t natural persons and legal entities that do not 
have their domicile or seat in the Sl ovak Republic in the trademark procedure
8. 
 
International Registration of Trademarks 
Article 35 
 
(1) Natural persons and legal enti ties having their domicile or seat in the Slovak Republic are 
entitled to apply with the Office for the in ternational registration of a trademark or 
registration of changes with rega rd to international registration of a trademark in accordance 
with the International Convention.9 
 (2) The applicant requesting international regist ration of a trademark or the registration of 
changes with regard to interna tional registration of a trademark as referred to in paragraph 1, 
is obliged to pay fees in accordan ce with the International Convention.
9 The Office shall 
publish the fees provided by the Intern ational Convention in the Journal. 
 
Article 36 
 
(1) The international registration of a trad emark including the request for providing of 
protection in the Slovak Republic has the same effects as the en try of the trademark in the 
Register performed by the Office.  (2) The time limit for filing the oppositions against providing of protection to an 
internationally registered trademark begins on the first day of the m onth following the month 
in which the trademark was published in the Gazette of the World Intellectual Property 
Organisation.  (3) If the protection to an internationally regi stered trademark has been refused in the Slovak 
Republic, such trademark is deemed to have never been registered in the Slovak Republic. 
 
Community Trademark 
Article 36a 
 
(1) An application for a Community trademark may be filed at the Office which shall mark 
the date of filing of the applic ation and shall forward thus-mar ked application to the Office 
for Harmonization in the Internal Ma rket within two weeks after filing. 
 (2) The Community trademark registration shall have the same effect in the Slovak Republic 
as if it has been registered by the Office. 
 
  IP/N/1/SVK/T/5 
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 Article 36b 
Conversion into a National Trademark Application 
 
(1) The Office shall examine a request for conv ersion of a Community trademark application 
or  registered Community trade mark into a na tional trademark application pursuant to Article 
09 of the Council regulation2a), if  the applicant shall, no later than two months from the 
elivery of the Office invitation:  a) file a Slovak translation of the request and of the documents accompanying it,  b) indicate a delivery address in the Slovak Republic, submit a wording, or two distinctive 
representations of the trademark on a sheet that shall not exceed  A4 size and shall be suitable 
for reproduction, including details, a nd the length of the longer ma rgin shall be at least 8 cm. 
 (2) The Office shall check whether the request is admissible in accordance with Article 110 
(1) of the Council regulation
2a). If the request is inadmissibl e, the Office shall reject it. 
 (3) The application resulting from the conve rsion of a Community trademark application 
shall be assigned the date of filing and the da te of priority of th at application, where 
appropriate, the seniority of  a trademark claimed under Article 34 and 35 of the Council 
regulation
2a). 
 (4) In case of the application resulting fr om the conversion of the Community trademark 
application, the Office shall register such si gn without publishing the application with the 
priority right which has been accorded to th e Community trademark; the Office shall publish 
this information in the Official Journal. 
 
Article 36c 
 
(1) An owner of the national trademark whose application had been filed in a good faith and 
had been accorded the priority right before accession of the Slovak Republic to the European 
Union, shall have the right to prohibit the us e of a Community trademark, where the effects 
of the Community trademark have been extend ed to the territory of the Slovak Republic 
according to the Treaty of Accession between the Slovak Republic and the European Union, 
 a) if such national trademark is identical with the Community trademark and both the marks are registered for identical goods or services, or  b) if, because of national trademark's identity with or similarity to the Community trademark 
and the identity or similarity of the goods or services covered by both the marks, there exists 
a likelihood of confusion on the part of the public; the likelih ood of confusion includes the 
likelihood of association between the nationa l trademark and the Community trademark, 
 
c) if such national trademark is identical w ith or confusingly similar to the Community 
trademark, where the national trademark has a reputation in the Slovak Republic and where 
the use of the Community trademark would take unfair advantage of, or would be detrimental 
to, the distinctive character or the repute of  such national trademar k, whilst both the marks 
are registered for goods and services which are not identical or similar. IP/N/1/SVK/T/5 
Page 22  
 
  
(2) The owner of the national trademark referr ed to in paragraph 1 may claim compensation 
for infringement of his rights which he sustai ned as a consequence of use of the Community 
trademark on the territory of the Slovak Re public within meaning of Article 26 (3). 
 
PART V 
COMMON, TRANSITIONAL AND FINAL PROVISIONS 
 
Common Provisions 
Article 37 
 
The proceedings concerning trademarks shall be governed by general provisions on administrative proceedings
10 except the provisions of Ar ticles 19, 23, 28 to 30, 32 to 34, 39, 
49, 50, 59 (1) and Article 60. 
 
Article 38 
 
(1) The applicant, or the owner of the trad emark shall be the party to the proceedings 
concerning trademarks or collective trademarks (hereinafter referred to as “Party to the 
proceedings”).  (2) The authorised person who has filed oppositi ons against the entry of a sign as a trademark 
in the Register pursuant to Article 9, the pe rson authorised pursuant to Article 32 and the 
person requesting invalidation or revocation of a trademark registration shall be the parties to 
the proceedings as well. 
 
Article 39 
 
(1) All submissions addressed to the Office shall be in a written form in the official language. 
 (2) A submission shall concern one trademark or one collective trademark only. In case of the 
request for permission to change the data referri ng to the person of th e owner of a trademark 
or a collective trademark, a request for registra tion of assignment or tran sfer of a trademark, a 
request for registration of a repr esentative or of a change in the representative, or a request 
for correction of an error in th e application, in the Register or  in the Journal, one submission 
may concern more trademarks of the same owner.  (3) The provision of paragraph 2 thereof will also apply to identical requests concerning more applications of the same trademark owner. 
 
(4) If the party to the proceedings concerni ng trademarks who submitted the proposal for the 
starting of the proceedings fails to comply w ith the invitation of the Office requesting to 
remove deficiencies or to amend the filing with in the prescribed period of time, the Office 
shall suspend the proceedings; the party of the pr oceedings must be warned to this effect in 
advance. The Office shall also suspend the pr oceedings at the reque st of the person who 
submitted the proposal.  
  IP/N/1/SVK/T/5 
 Page 23 
 
 
 Article 40  
Further processing 
 
(1) On the basis of the request of the party to the proceedings on extension of the time limit 
set by the Office for performing an act, while such request has been filed before the expiry of 
such a time limit, the Office is entitled  to extend the relevant time limit. 
 (2) If a party to the proceedings before the Office has failed to comply with the time limit set by the Office for performing an act, he is entitle d to ask the Office for further processing and 
at the same time perform the omitted act no late r than two months from the delivery of the 
Office decision issued as a consequence of  failure to comply with the time limit. 
 (3) The Office shall refuse a request pursuant to paragraph 1 or 2 in  case of time limits 
pursuant to paragraphs 1, 2, Artic les 6(3), Article 9, Article 10 (2 ) and (4), Article 13 (2) , 
Article 17 (3), Article 40a (1) and Article 42 (1 ) and in case of failure  to comply of time 
limits pursuant to Article 10 (3).  (4) The Office shall refuse the request for exte nsion of time limits or for further processing 
which fails to comply with conditions pursuan t to paragraphs 1 or 2 or to which a ban 
pursuant to paragraph applies; before the refusa l of the request the O ffice shall enable the 
person who requests it to react to  the ascertained reasons on the basis of which it is to be 
refused.  (5) If the Office grants request for further proc essing the legal effects of the decision issued 
as a consequence of failure to comply with tim e limit shall be retracted  or shall not ensue. 
 (6) If the Office fails to make a decision about  refusing the request pursuant to paragraphs 1 
or 2 within two months from its delivery, th e request shall be deemed to be granted. 
 
Article 40a 
Restitutio in integrum 
 
(1) If the party to the proceedings before the Office without causing it himself has failed to comply with the statutory time limit or the tim e limit set by the Office for performing an act 
where a consequence of non-performance of th e act is suspension of the proceedings or 
another right is lost, he is entitled to ask the Office for restitutio in integrum and at the same 
time perform the omitted act within two months from the removal of the cause for which he 
could not perform the act, however , no later than within 12 mont hs from the expiry of the 
non-complied time limit.  
(2) The party to the proceedings  shall justify the request purs uant to paragraph 1 and state 
particularly the facts, whic h had prevented the performan ce of the action. Statements 
submitted after the expiry of any of the time lim its pursuant to paragraph 1 shall not be taken 
into consideration by the Office when  making a decision about the request. 
 (3) In case of reasonable doubt about the veracity  of the statement pursuant to paragraph 3 the 
Office may ask the applicant to prove his statements.  IP/N/1/SVK/T/5 
Page 24  
 
 (4) Request for restitutio in integrum shall not be granted in case of failure to comply with 
the time limits for performance of th e act pursuant to Article 40 (3). 
 (5) The Office shall refuse the request for restitutio in integrum which fails to meet 
conditions pursuant to paragr aphs 1 and 2, or to which th e ban pursuant to paragraph 4 
applies or the person who requests has not prove n his statements pursu ant to paragraph 3; 
before the refusal of the request the Office sha ll enable the person who re quests it to react to 
the ascertained reasons on the basis of which it is to be refused.  (6) If the Office grants the request for restitutio in integrum , the legal effects of the decision 
issued as a consequence of failure to comply w ith the time limit shall be retracted or shall not 
ensue.  (7) Third party that, that in th e territory of the Slovak Republic , has use the sign identical or 
confusingly similar to the applied sign or trademark in good faith in the period since the 
validity of the decision issued as a consequence of failure to comply with the time limit until 
the cessation of legal effects of this decision pursuant to paragraph 6, is entitled to use this 
sign within its business activity without the obligation for remune ration for the us of the sign. 
 
Article 40b 
Grounds for the decision 
 
(1) Parties to the administrative proceedings befo re the Office shall be obliged to submit or 
indicate evidence in sup port of their statements. 
 (2) The Office shall develop the evidence and ev aluate the evidence at its discretion, namely 
each of them separately and all of them in their mutual relationships. 
 (3) The Office shall decide on the basis of the facts of the case ascertained from the 
developed evidence submitted or indicated by the parties. 
 
Article 41 
 
(1) Upon the request, the Office may permit a thir d party to inspect the file if this party 
proves a legal interest.  (2) Right for a file inspecti on shall include a ri ght for making photocopies for the fee. 
 (3) On the basis of a request of applicant or trademark owner those parts of the file which 
contain trade secret or other important inform ation which publication is not necessary for a 
guarantee of the right for an information of third parties including the parties to the 
proceedings shall be excluded form the file inspection.  (4) Rights pursuant to paragraphs 1 and 2 shall not be exercised in  relation to the parts of the 
file kept confidential according to  the paragraph 3, to the reco rd on voting and to those parts 
of the file containing ancillary notes or draft versions of d ecisions or other correspondence. 
 
  IP/N/1/SVK/T/5 
 Page 25 
 
 
 Article 42 
Remedies 
 
(1) An appeal against the decision of the Office may be filed within 30 days from the delivery 
of the decision.  (2) When making decisions on the appeal the O ffice shall be bound by its scope; this shall not 
apply  a) in matters in which proceedings can be started ex officio,  b) in case of joint rights or obligations  concerning several parties on one side. 
 (3) Substantiation of an appeal must be filed at  the Office within one month after the date of 
filing the appeal. The time limit for filing th e substantiation may not  be extended and the 
delayed filing of the substa ntiation may not be overlooked. 
 (4) Filing an appeal remonstration shall no t be admissible agains t a decision on which a 
request for further processing or request for restitutio in integrum is granted. 
 
Article 43 
 
(1) The Office shall keep the Register wherei n important data concerning trademarks are 
entered. The Register is pub lic and open to inspection. 
 (2) Data entered in the registers pursuant to paragraph 1 shall be c onsidered valid, unless a 
decision of the relevant authority determines otherwise.  (3) Change of data entered in the register, following from valid and the Office shall enter 
enforceable decision of the court, in the re gister without delay on delivery of the court 
decision with validity clause.  (4) Entry of data and facts following from the operation of the law or from a decision of the 
relevant authority shall not be considered a decision issued  in the proceedings pursuant to a 
general provisions on administrative proceedings 
10. 
 (5) The Office publishes the Journal wherein ap plications for trademarks and collective 
trademarks pursuant to Article 8 (5), as well as entries and renewals  of registrations of 
trademarks and changes in data  concerning trademarks which ha ve been performed after the 
entry of the trademark in the Register, are published. 
 
Provision of Authorisation 
Article 44 
 
The Office shall lay down by means of the generally binding Decree: 
 a) detailed procedure for filing of a pplication and divisi onal application , 
 IP/N/1/SVK/T/5 
Page 26  
 
 b) detailed formalities of the contract concerning the use of a collective trademark, 
 c) detailed formalities concerning the docum ents proving the acquisition of distinctive 
character of a trademark,  d) data in publishing of the trad emark application in the Journal, 
 e) detailed formalities of the oppositions agains t the entry of a sign in the Register as a 
trademark,  f) data entered in the Register and publishe d in the Journal after the registration of a 
trademark,  g) detailed formalities of the certificate, the duplicate, the extract from the Register and the certificate of the priority right,  h) detailed formalities of request for the entry of other data in the Register,  i) detailed formalities concerning the request for invalidation and revocation of a trademark 
registration,  j) detailed procedure for filing request for renewal of trademark registration, 
 k) details on keeping of record s concerning trademark applicati ons and registered trademarks, 
 l) details concerning correction of errors, 
 m) detailed procedure for filing of  application for registration of  international trademarks and 
request for the entry of changes in th e International Register of Marks, 
 n) details on communication to the Office, delivery and on submission by electronic means. 
 
Article 45 
Transitional Provisions 
 
(1) The proceedings on applications  of trademarks, that are pending as of the date of this Act 
entering into force, will be pursued in accordance with this Act, where the applicant shall be 
obliged to amend his application in complian ce with the provisions laid down by this Act 
within a prescribed period of time.  
(2) The rights and relations in trademarks register ed in the Register prior to the entry into  
force of this Act shall be governed  by the provisions of this Ac t. The rise of these rights and 
relations as well as the claims arising thereof prio r to the entry into force of this Act shall be 
exercised according to the regulations va lid at the time of their establishment. 
 
(3) The owner of a trademark which was declar ed as famous by the Office pursuant to the 
previous regulations, may request the revocation from the Register  of identical or confusingly 
similar trademarks under the conditions re ferred to in Article 23 (3) of the Act  IP/N/1/SVK/T/5 
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 No. 174/1988 Coll. on Trademarks within the valid ity period of the trademark; but at the 
latest within ten years from the entry into force of this Act. Within this period the owner of a 
famous trademark may also file the oppositions  against the entry of an identical or 
confusingly similar sign in the Register pursu ant to Article 9, regardless of the goods or 
services for which the opposed sign is filed for registration. 
 (4) If the Office ascertains that the famous trademark does not fulfil requirements listed in Article 18 (1) of the Act No. 174/1988 Coll. on trademarks, it shall revoke the decision on 
the declaration of the trademark to be famous.  (5) The opponent shall be obliged to ame nd his opposition, which he filed according to 
Article 9 of the previous Act be fore 1 February 2004 and which is  not in compliance with this 
Act, in conformity with the provisions laid down by this Act within three months from the 
entry into force of this Act; otherwise the oppos ition shall not be take n into consideration. 
 
Article 46 
Repealed Provisions 
 
The following regulations shall be repealed:  1. Act No. 174/1988 Coll. on Trademarks,  2. Decree of the Invention and Discovery Office No. 187/1988 Coll. on Proceedings in 
Trademarks,  3. Article II. of the Act of the National C ouncil of the Slovak Republic No. 90/1993 Coll. on 
Measures in the Field of Industrial Property 
 
Article 47 
Effectiveness 
 
This Act shall become effective on January 1
st, 2002. 
The Act No 14/2004 Coll. shall enter into force on 1 February 2004 with the exception of Article 4 (3), Article 16 (17), Article 27 (3), and Article 36a to 36c, which shall enter into 
force on day on which the Treaty of Accession between the Slovak Republic and European 
Union becomes effective. 
 IP/N/1/SVK/T/5 
Page 28  
 
 Notes: 
  
  
1 e.g. Article 20(f) to 20(j) of Civil Code, Article 69 of Act No. 455/1991 Coll. Trade Licensing Act as amended, 
Act No. 83/1990 Coll. on Citi zens associations as amended 
 
1a) Paris Convention on the Industrial Property Protection from March 20, 1883, revised in Brussels on 
December 14, 1900; in Washington, D.C. on June 2, 1911;  in The Hague on November 6, 1925; in London on 
June 2, 1934; in Lisbon on October 31, 1958 and in Stockholm on June 14, 1967, promulgated by the Decree of 
the Minister of Foreign Affairs No. 64/1975 Coll. and amended by the Decree of the Minister of Foreign Affairs 
No. 81/1985 Coll. 
 
1b) Communication of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Slovak Republic No. 152/200 Coll. on concluding 
the Agreement Establishing the World Trade Organization 
 
1c) e. g. Articles 566 to 590 and 642 to 672 of the Commercial Code  
 2 
Article 6bis of the Paris Convention on the Industrial Property Protection from March 20, 1883, revised in 
Brussels on December 14, 1900; in Washington, D.C. on June 2, 1911; in The Hague on November 6, 1925; in London on June 2, 1934; in Lisbon on October 31, 1958 and in Stockholm on July 14, 1967, promulgated by the 
Decree of the Minister of Foreign Affairs No. 64/1975 Coll. and wording by the Decree of the Minister of 
Foreign Affairs No. 81/1985 Coll. 
 
2a) Council regulation (EC) No 40/94 of 20 December 1993  on the Community trade mark. Council regulation 
(EC) No 3288/94 of 22 December 1994 amending Council regulation (EC) No 40/94. 
 
3 The Nice Convention on International Classification of  Goods and Services for the Purposes of Mark 
Registration from June 15, 1957; revised in Stockholm on July 14, 1967 and in Geneva on May 13, 1977, promulgated by the Decree of the Minister of Foreign Affairs No. 118/1979 Coll. and amended by the Decree of 
the Minister of Foreign Affairs No. 77/1985 Coll. 
 
4 e. g. Articles 69, 479 and 487 of the Commercial Code, Article 460 and 469 of the Civil Code, Article 12 to 17 
of the Act No. 111/1990 Coll. on  state enterprise as amended 
 
4a) Decree of the Industrial Property Office of the Slovak Republic No. 117/1997 Coll., on implementation of the 
Act No. 55/1997 Coll. on Trademarks 
 
4b) Articles 74 to 77 and Article 102 of The Rules of Civil Procedure 
 5 
Article 508 and following of the Commercial Code 
 6 
Article 151a and following of the Civil Code, Article 297 and following of the Commercial Code  
 
8 Article 40 of the Act No. 237/1991 Coll. on Patent Representatives as amended 
 
9 Madrid Agreement Concerning the International Registration of Marks from April 14, 1891; revised in 
Brussels on December 14, 1900; in Washington, D.C. on June 2, 1911; in The Hague on November 6, 1925; in 
London on June 2, 1934; in Nice on June 15, 1957 and in Stockholm on July 14, 1967 promulgated by the Decree of the Minister of Foreign Affairs No. 65/1975 Coll. amended by the Decree of the Minister of Foreign 
Affairs No. 78/1985 Coll., Communication of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Slovak Republic No 
267/1998 Coll. on conclusion of the Protocol Relating to the Madrid Agreement Concerning the International Registration of Marks 
 
10 Act No. 71/1967 Coll. On Administrative Proceedings (the Administrative Code) 
 
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