WORLD TRADE ORGANIZATION
ORGANISATION MONDIALE DU COMMERCE
ORGANIZACIÓN MUNDIAL DEL COMERCIOIP/N/1/BRA/I/1
19 September 2000
(00-3708)
Council for Trade-Related Aspects of
Intellectual Property RightsOriginal:  English/
anglais/
inglés
MAIN DEDICATED INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY
LAWS AND REGULATIONS NOTIFIED UNDER
ARTICLE 63.2 OF THE AGREEMENT
BRAZIL
The present document reproduces the text1 of Law 9.279, which regulates rights and
obligations regarding industrial property, as notified by Brazil under Article 63.2 of the Agreement
(see document IP/N/1/BRA/2).
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
BRÉSIL
Le présent document contient le texte1 de la Loi 9.279, qui régit les droits et obligations
concernant la propriété industrielle, notifiée par le Brésil au titre de l'article 63:2 de l'Accord (voir le
document IP/N/1/BRA/2).
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
BRASIL
En el presente documento se reproduce el texto1 de la Ley 9.279, que regula los derechos y
obligaciones relativos a la propiedad industrial, notificada por el Brasil en virtud del párrafo 2 del
artículo 63 del Acuerdo (véase el documento IP/N/1/BRA/2).
                                                     
1 In English only. The text in the original language is available for consultation by interested
Delegations at the WTO Secretariat./En anglais seulemen t.  Les délégations intéressées peuvent consulter le
texte dans sa langue d'origine, au Secrétariat de l'OM C./En inglés solamente.  Las delegaciones interesadas
podrán consultar en la Secretaría de la OMC el texto en su idioma original.IP/N/1/BRA/I/1
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LAW No. 9,279, OF MAY 14, 1996
Regulates rights and obligations regarding industrial property.
THE PRESIDENT OF THE REPUBLIC
Let it be known that the National Congress decrees and I sanction the following Law:
PRELIMINARY PROVISIONS
Article 1. This Law regulates rights and obligations regarding industrial property.
Article 2. The protection of industrial property rights, considering the social interest and the
technological and economic development of this country, is afforded by means of:
I – the granting of invention and utility model patents;
II – the granting of a registration of an industrial design;
III – the granting of a registration of a trademark;IV – the repression of false geographical indication; andV – the repression of unfair competition.
Article 3. The provisions of this Law also apply to:
I – applications for patents or for registrations originating from abroad and filed in this country by a
party that enjoys protection under a treaty or convention in force in Brazil; and
II – to nationals of or persons domiciled in a country that assures Brazilians or persons domiciled
in Brazil reciprocity of equal or equivalent rights.
Article 4. The provisions of treaties in force in Brazil are equally applicable to natural and legal
persons who are nationals of or domiciled in this country.
Article 5. For legal effects, industrial property rights are deemed to be movable property.
TITLE I
PATENTS
CHAPTER I
OWNERSHIP
Article 6. It shall be assured to the author of an invention or a utility model the right  to obtain a
patent that guarantees his property, under the conditions established in this Law.
Paragraph 1. In the absence of proof to the contrary, the applicant is presumed to be legitimately
entitled to obtain the patent.
Paragraph 2. A patent may be applied for in the author’s own name, by the heirs or successors of
the author, by the assign or by whomever the law or the employment or services contract determinesto be the owner.
Paragraph 3. In the case of an invention or utility model created jointly by two or more persons, the
patent may be applied for by all or any of them, by means of naming and identifying the others, to
safeguard the respective rights.
Paragraph 4. The inventor shall be named and identified, and may request that his name not be
disclosed.
Article 7. If two or more authors have created the same invention or utility model, acting
independently of each other, the right to obtain the patent shall be assured to the one who proves the
oldest filing date, regardless of the dates of invention or creation.
Sole Paragraph. The withdrawal of an earlier filing before it has produced any effect shall confer
priority on the immediately subsequent filing.IP/N/1/BRA/I/1
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CHAPTER II
PATENTABILITY
SECTION I
PATENTABLE INVENTIONS AND UTILITY MODELS
Article 8. An invention is patentable if it satisfies the requirements of novelty, inventive step, and
industrial application.
Article 9. An object of practical use, or part thereof, is patentable as utility model if it is susceptible
of industrial application, has a new form or arrangement, and involves an inventive act, that results infunctioning improvement in its use or manufacture.
Article 10. The following are not considered to be inventions or utility models:
I – discoveries, scientific theories, and mathematical methods;II – purely abstract conceptions;III – commercial, accounting, financial, educational, advertising, raffling, and inspection schemes,
plans, principles or methods;
IV – literary, architectural, artistic and scientific works, or any aesthetic creation;
V – computer programs per se ;
VI – presentation of information;
VII – rules of games;VIII – surgical techniques and methods, as well as therapeutic or diagnostic methods, for
application to human or animal body; and
IX – all or part of natural living beings and biological materials found in nature, even if isolated
therefrom, including the genome or germoplasm of any natural living being, and the natural biological
processes.
Article 11. An invention and a utility model are considered to be new if they are not part of the state
of the art.
Paragraph 1. The state of the art consists of everything that became accessible to the public prior
to the filing date of the patent application, by means of a written or oral description, by use or by any
other means, in Brazil or abroad, except as provided in Articles 12, 16, and 17.
Paragraph 2. For the purposes of determining novelty, the entire content of an application filed in
Brazil, and not yet published, shall be considered to be state of the art from the date of filing or ofclaimed priority, provided that it comes to be published, even subsequently.
Paragraph 3. The provisions of the preceding Paragraph shall apply to an international patent
application filed according to a treaty or convention in force in Brazil, provided that there is national
processing.
Article 12. The disclosure of an invention or utility model shall not be considered to be state of the
art if it occurred during the 12 (twelve) months preceding the date of filing or of priority of the patentapplication, if made:
I – by the inventor;
II – by the Instituto Nacional da Propriedade Industrial – INPI (National Institute of Industrial
Property), by means of official publication of the patent application filed without the consent of theinventor, based on information obtained from him or as a consequence of actions taken by him; or
II – by third parties, based on information obtained directly or indirectly from the inventor or as a
consequence of actions taken by him.
Sole Paragraph. The INPI may require from the inventor a statement related to the disclosure,
accompanied or not by proofs, under the conditions established in regulations.
Article 13. An invention is endowed with inventive step provided that, to a technician versed in the
subject, it is not derived in an evident or obvious way from the state of the art.IP/N/1/BRA/I/1
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Article 14. A utility model is endowed with inventive act provided that, to a technician versed in the
subject, it is not derived in a common or ordinary way from the state of the art.
Article 15. An invention and a utility model are not considered susceptible of industrial application
when they can be used or produced in any kind of industry.
SECTION II
PRIORITY
Article 16. A patent application filed in a country that maintains an agreement with Brazil, or in an
international organization, and that produces the effect of a national filing, shall be assured the right of
priority, within the time limits established in the agreement, and the filing shall not be invalidated or
prejudiced by events occurring within such time limits.
Paragraph 1. The claim of priority shall be made at the time of filing, and may be supplemented
within 60 (sixty) days by other priorities prior to the filing date in Brazil.
Paragraph 2. The claim of priority shall be proven by a proper document from the country of origin,
containing the number, date, title, specifications  and, if applicable, claims and drawings, accompanied
by a free translation of the filing certificate or equivalent document, containing identifying information
on the application, for which content the applicant is solely responsible.
Paragraph 3. If not submitted at the time of filing, the proofs must be submitted within up 180 (one
hundred and eighty) days of the date of filing.
Paragraph 4. For international applications filed under a treaty in force in Brazil, the translation
referred to in Paragraph 2 must be submitted within a period of 60 (sixty) days of the date of entry into
national processing.
Paragraph 5. If an application filed in Brazil is faithfully reproduced in the document from the
country of origin, a statement by the applicant about that shall be sufficient to replace the freetranslation.
Paragraph 6. When priority is obtained by assignment, the corresponding document must be
submitted within 180 (one hundred and eighty) days of the filing date or, if applicable, within up 60
(sixty) days of the date of entry into national processing, and consular legalization in the country oforigin shall not be required.
Paragraph 7. Failure to provide proof within the time limits provided for in this Article shall result in
the loss of priority.
Paragraph 8. In the case of an application filed along with a claim of priority, the request for early
publication must be accompanied of the proof  of priority.
Article 17. An application for an invention or utility model patent originally filed in Brazil, without
claiming priority and not yet published, shall assure the right of priority for the subsequent applicationon the same subject matter filed in Brazil by the same applicant or by successors, within a period of 1(one) year.
Paragraph 1. The priority shall be admitted only for the subject matter disclosed in the earlier
application, and does not extend to any new subject matter that is introduced.
Paragraph 2. An earlier application that is still pending shall be considered as definitively
dismissed.
Paragraph 3. A patent application originating from the division of an earlier application may not
serve as the basis for claiming priority.
SECTION III
NON-PATENTABLE INVENTIONS AND UTILITY MODELS
Article 18. The following are not patentable:
I – anything contrary to morals, standards of respectability and public security, order and health;IP/N/1/BRA/I/1
Page 5
II – substances, materials, mixtures, elements or products of any kind, as well as the modification
of their physical-chemical properties and the respective processes for obtainment or modification,when resulting from the transformation of the atomic nucleus; and
II – all or part of living beings, except transgenic microorganisms that satisfy the three
requirements of patentability – novelty, inventive step and industrial application – provided for inArticle 8 and which are not mere discoveries.
Sole Paragraph. For the purposes of this Law, transgenic microorganisms are organisms, except
for all or part of plants or animals, that express, by means of direct human intervention in their genetic
composition, a characteristic normally not attainable by the species under natural conditions.
CHAPTER III
PATENT APPLICATIONS
SECTION I
FILING OF APPLICATION
Article 19. A patent application, in accordance with the conditions established by the INPI, shall
contain:
I – the request;II – the specifications;
III – the claims;
IV – drawings, if applicable;V – the abstract; andVI – proof of payment of the filing fee.
Article 20. Once the application has been submitted, it shall undergo a formal preliminary
examination and, if found to be properly documented, shall be docketed, the date of submission shall
be considered as the date of filing.
Article 21. An application that does not formally satisfy the provisions of Article 19, but that
contains data relating to the object, to the applicant and to the inventor, may be submitted, againstdated receipt, to the INPI, which shall stipulate the requirements to be satisfied, within a period of 30(thirty) days, under penalty of having the documentation returned or the application dismissed.
Sole Paragraph. Upon satisfaction of the requirements, the filing shall be considered as having
occurred on the date of the receipt.
SECTION II
CONDITIONS OF THE APPLICATION
Article 22. An invention patent application must refer to a single invention or group of inventions
interrelated in such a way as to comprise a single inventive concept.
Article 23. A utility model patent application must refer to a single principal model, which may
include a plurality of distinct additional elements or constructive or configurative variants, provided thatthe technical-functional and corporeal unity of the object is maintained.
Article 24. The specifications shall clearly and sufficiently describe the object, so as to permit its
reproduction by a technician versed in the subject, and shall indicate, when applicable, the best wayof doing it.
Sole Paragraph. In the case of biological material that is essential to the practical execution of the
object of the application, which cannot be described in accordance with this Article and which is notaccessible to the public, the specifications shall be supplemented by the deposit of the material withan institution authorized by the INPI or indicated in an international agreement.IP/N/1/BRA/I/1
Page 6
Article 25. The claims shall be substantiated in the specifications, characterizing the particulars of
the application, and clearly and precisely defining the subject matter that is the object of theprotection.
Article 26. A patent application may be divided into two or more applications, ex officio  or at the
request of the applicant, up to the end of the examination, provided that the divided application:
I – makes specific reference to the original application; andII – does not exceed the subject matter disclosed in the original application.Sole Paragraph. The request for division not in accordance with the provisions of this Article shall
be dismissed.
Article 27. The divided applications shall bear the filing date of the original application and have the
benefit of priority thereof, if applicable.
Article 28. Each divided application shall be subject to payment of the corresponding fees.Article 29. A patent application that has been withdrawn or abandoned must be published.
Paragraph 1. The request for withdrawal shall be submitted within up 16 (sixteen) months of the
date of filing or of the oldest priority.
Paragraph 2. The withdrawal of an earlier filing that has not produced any effect shall confer
priority on the immediately subsequent filing.
SECTION III
PROCESSING AND EXAMINATION OF THE APPLICATION
Article 30. A patent application shall be kept secret for 18 (eighteen) months from the date of filing
or of the oldest priority, if any, after which it shall be published, except as provided for in Article 75.
Paragraph 1. The publication of the application may be anticipated at the request of the applicant.Paragraph 2. The publication shall contain data identifying the patent application, and a copy of the
specifications, claims, abstract and drawings shall remain available to the public at the INPI.
Paragraph 3. In the case referred to in the Sole Paragraph of Article 24, the biological material
shall become available to the public upon the publication referred to in this Article.
Article 31. After publication of the application and up to the end of the examination, interested
parties may submit documents and data to assist the examination.
Sole Paragraph. The examination shall not begin before 60 (sixty) days from the publication of the
application.
Article 32. In order to better clarify or define a patent application, the applicant may make changes
until the time of the request for examination, provided these are limited to the subject matter initially
disclosed in the application.
Article 33. The examination of a patent application must be requested by the applicant or by some
other interested party, within a period of 36 (thirty six) months of the date of filing, under penalty ofhaving the application dismissed.
Sole Paragraph. A patent application may be reinstated, if the applicant so requests, within 60
(sixty) days of the date it was dismissed, upon payment of a specific fee, under penalty of having the
application definitively dismissed.
Article 34. After the examination has been requested, the following must be submitted, within a
period of 60 (sixty) days, whenever requested, under penalty of having the application dismissed:
I – objections, search for prior art and results of examination for granting of a corresponding
application in other countries, when priority is claimed;
II – documents necessary to regularize the processing and examination of the application; and
III – free translation of the proper document referred to in Paragraph 2 of Article 16, if it was
replaced by the statement referred to in Paragraph 5 of the same Article.IP/N/1/BRA/I/1
Page 7
Article 35. At the time of the technical examination, a report of search and an opinion shall be
prepared with respect to:
I – patentability of the application;
II – appropriateness of the application given the nature claimed;
III – reformulation or division of the application; orIV – technical requirements.Article 36. When the opinion ascertains the non-patentability of the application or the
incompatibility of the application to the nature claimed, or makes some demand, the applicant shall be
notified to submit comments within a period of 90 (ninety) days.
Paragraph 1. If there is no response to the demand, the application shall be definitively dismissed.Paragraph 2. If there is response to the demand, even if it has not been satisfied, or its formulation
is contested, and whether or not comments on patentability or compatibility have been submitted, theexamination shall be continued.
Article 37. Once the examination has been concluded, a decision shall be handed down, either
approving or rejecting the patent application.
CHAPTER IV
GRANTING AND TERM OF THE PATENT
SECTION I
GRANTING OF THE PATENT
Article 38. A patent shall be granted after the application is approved, and proof of payment of the
corresponding fee has been furnished, by means of issuing the respective patent certificate.
Paragraph 1. The payment of the fee and its respective proof of payment must be done within a
period of 60 (sixty) days of approval.
Paragraph 2. The fee provided for in this Article may also be paid and proven within 30 (thirty)
days of the time limit referred to in the preceding Paragraph, independently of any notification, uponpayment of a specific fee, under penalty of having the application definitively dismissed.
Paragraph 3. A patent shall be deemed to have been granted on the date of publication of the
respective act.
Article 39. The patent certificate shall contain its number, title and nature, the name of the inventor,
with due regard for the provisions of Paragraph 4 of Article 6, the identification and domicile of the
titleholder, the term, the specifications, the claims, and the drawings, as well as the data regardingpriority.
SECTION II
TERM OF THE PATENT
Article 40. An invention patent shall remain in force for a period of 20 (twenty) years, and a utility
model patent for a period of 15 (fifteen) years from the date of filing.
Sole Paragraph. The term shall not be less than 10 (ten) years for an invention patent and 7
(seven) years for a utility model patent, beginning on the date of granting, unless the INPI has beenprevented from examining the merits of the application by a proven pending judicial dispute or for
reasons of force majeure .IP/N/1/BRA/I/1
Page 8
CHAPTER V
PROTECTION CONFERRED  BY THE PATENT
SECTION I
RIGHTS
Article 41. The scope of the protection conferred by the patent shall be determined by the content
of the claims, and interpreted on the basis of the specifications and drawings.
Article 42. A patent confers on its titleholder the right to prevent a third party from, without his
consent, producing, using, offering for sale, selling or importing for these purposes:
I – a product that is the object of the patent;
II – a process or a product directly obtained by a patented process.
Paragraph 1. The patentholder is further assured the right to prevent third parties from contributing
to the perpetration by others of the acts referred to in this Article.
Paragraph 2. A process patent ri ght, referred to in Item II, shall be deemed to have occurred when
the possessor or owner does not prove, by a specific judicial ruling, that his product was obtained bya manufacturing process different than the one protected by the patent.
Article 43. The provisions of the previous Article do not apply:
I – to acts carried out by unauthorized third parties, privately and without commercial purposes,
provided these acts do not prejudice the economic interests of the patentholder;
II – to acts carried out by unauthorized third parties for experimental purposes, in connection with
scientific or technological studies or researches;
III – to the preparation of a medicine in accordance with a medical prescription for individual cases,
carried out by a qualified professional, as well as to the medicine so prepared;
IV – to a product manufactured in accordance with a process or product patent that has been
introduced onto the domestic market directly by the patentholder or with his consent;
V – to third parties who, in the case of patents related to living material, use the patented product,
without economic intent, as an initial source of variation or propagation to obtain other products; and
VI – to third parties who, in case of patents related to living material, use, place in circulation, or
market a patented product that has been legally introduced into commerce by the patentholder or theholder of a license, provided that the patented product is not used for commercial multiplication orpropagation of the living material in question.
Article 44. The patentholder is assured the right to obtain indemnification for improper exploitation
of the object of his patent, including that which occurs between the date of publication of the
application and the date of granting of the patent.
Paragraph 1. If the transgressor  obtained, by any means, knowledge of the content of the filed
application prior to the publication, the period of improper exploitation, for purposes of indemnification,shall be calculated beginning with the date of the start of the exploitation.
Paragraph 2. When the object of the patent application refers to biological material, deposited as
provided in the Sole Paragraph of Article 24, the right to indemnification shall be recognized only
when the biological material has become available to the public.
Paragraph 3. The right to obtain indemnification for improper exploitation, including that related to
the period prior to the granting of the patent, is restricted to the content of its object, as provided for inArticle 41.
SECTION II
PRIOR USER
Article 45. A person who in good faith, prior to the filing or priority date of a patent application, was
exploiting the object thereof in this country, shall be assured the right to continue the exploitation,without onus, in the same manner and under the same conditions as before.IP/N/1/BRA/I/1
Page 9
Paragraph 1. The right conferred under this Article may only be assigned together with the
business or company, or part thereof that is directly related to the exploitation of the object of thepatent, by transfer or leasing.
Paragraph 2. The right referred to in this Article shall not be assured to a person who gained
knowledge of the object of the patent through disclosure, in accordance with Article 12, provided thatthe application has been filed within 1 (one) year of the disclosure.
CHAPTER VI
NULLITY OF A PATENT
SECTION I
GENERAL PROVISIONS
Article 46. A patent granted contrary to the provisions of this Law is null.
Article 47. Nullity may not apply to all the claims, and the condition of partial nullity is the fact that
the subsisting claims in themselves constitute patentable subject matter.
Article 48. Nullity of a patent shall produce effects from the filing date of the application.Article 49. In the case of non-compliance with the provisions of Article 6, the inventor may,
alternatively, demand, in judicial proceedings, adjudication of the patent.
SECTION II
ADMINISTRATIVE NULLITY PROCEEDINGS
Article 50. Nullity of a patent shall be administratively declared when:
I – any of the legal requirements were not satisfied;II – the specifications and claims did not comply with the provisions of Articles 24 and 25,
respectively;
III – the object of the patent extends beyond the contents of the application filed originally; or
IV – any of the essential formalities that are indispensable to granting has been omitted during the
processing thereof.
Article 51. Nullity proceedings may be instituted either ex officio  or at the request of  any person
having a legitimate interest, within a period of 6 (six) months of the granting of the patent.
Sole Paragraph. Nullity proceedings shall continue even if the patent has been extinguished.
Article 52. The titleholder shall be notified to submit comments within a period of 60 (sixty) days.
Article 53. After the time limit established in the preceding Article has elapsed, whether or not
comments were submitted, the INPI shall issue an opinion and notify the titleholder and the applicantto submit their comments within the common period of 60 (sixty) days.
Article 54. After the time limit established in the preceding Article has elapsed, even if no
comments have been submitted, the case shall be decided by the President of the INPI, whereupon
the administrative jurisdiction shall be ended.
Article 55. The provisions of this Section apply, where applicable , to certificates of addition.
SECTION III
JUDICIAL NULLITY PROCEEDINGS
Article 56. Judicial nullity proceedings may be proposed, at any time during the term of the patent,
either by the INPI or by any person having a legitimate interest.
Paragraph 1. Nullity of a patent may be argued at any time as a matter of defense.IP/N/1/BRA/I/1
Page 10
Paragraph 2. The judge may, as a preventive or incidental measure, order the suspension of the
effects of the patent, provided that the proper procedural requirements have been satisfied.
Article 57. Patent judicial nullity proceedings shall be filed within the Federal Court forum, and the
INPI, when not the plaintiff, shall participate in them.
Paragraph 1. The time limit for a response by the defendant who is the patentholder shall be 60
(sixty) days.
Paragraph 2. Once the decision on the judicial nullity proceedings has become final, the INPI shall
publish the entry thereof, so that third parties be informed.
CHAPTER VII
ASSIGNMENT AND ENTRIES
Article 58. A patent application or a patent, the contents of both being indivisible, may be assigned
in whole or in part.
Article 59. The INPI shall make the following entries:
I – assignment, stating full identification of the assignee;
II – any limitation or onus that applies to the application or the patent; and
II – changes in the name, headquarter, or address of the applicant or the titleholder.
Article 60. Entries shall become effective with regard to third parties beginning on the date of their
publication.
CHAPTER VIII
LICENSES
SECTION I
VOLUNTARY LICENSES
Article 61. The patentholder or the applicant may enter into a licensing contract for exploitation.
Sole Paragraph. The licensee may be invested by the titleholder with full powers to take action to
defend the patent.
Article 62. The license contract must be recorded with the INPI so that it becomes effective
regarding third parties.
Paragraph 1. The recording shall become effective with regard to third parties beginning on the
date of its publication.
Paragraph 2. For the purposes of validating proof of use, the license contract shall not need to be
recorded with the INPI.
Article 63. An improvement introduced in a licensed patent shall belong to the party that makes the
improvement, and the other party is entitled to a preferential right to the licensing thereof.
SECTION II
OFFER OF LICENSE
Article 64. The patentholder may ask the INPI to offer it with a view to its exploitation.
Paragraph 1. The INPI shall arrange for publication of the offer.Paragraph 2. No voluntary license contract of an exclusive nature shall be recorded with the INPI
unless the titleholder has desisted from the offer.
Paragraph 3. A patent that is under voluntary license on an exclusive basis may not be the object
of an offer.IP/N/1/BRA/I/1
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Paragraph 4. The titleholder may, at any time prior to the express acceptance of his terms by the
interested party, withdraw the offer, and the provisions of Article 66 shall not apply.
Article 65. In the absence of an agreement between the titleholder and the licensee, the parties
may ask the INPI to arbitrate the remuneration.
Paragraph 1. For the purposes of this Article, the INPI shall observe the provisions of Paragraph 4
of the Article 73.
Paragraph 2. The remuneration may be revised after 1 (one) year has elapsed since it was
established.
Article 66. The patent subject to offer shall have the annual fee reduced to one-half during the
period between the offer and the granting, by whatever means, of the first license.
Article 67. The patentholder may request cancellation of a license if the licensee does not begin
effective exploitation within 1 (one) year of the date of granting, if exploitation is interrupted for aperiod of more than 1 (one) year, or if the conditions for exploitation have not been satisfied.
SECTION III
COMPULSORY LICENSE
Article 68. The titleholder shall be subject to having the patent licensed on a compulsory basis if he
exercises his rights derived therefrom in an abusive manner, or by means thereof engages in abuseof economic power, proven pursuant to law in an administrative or judicial decision.
Paragraph 1. The following also occasion a compulsory license:I – non-exploitation of the object of the patent within the Brazilian territory for failure to manufacture
or incomplete manufacture of the product, or also failure to make full use of the patented process,
except cases where this is not economically feasible, when importation shall be permitted; or
II – commercialization that does not satisfy the needs of the market.Paragraph 2. A license may be requested only by a person having a legitimate interest and having
technical and economic capacity to effectively exploit the object of the patent, that shall be destined
predominantly for the domestic market, in which case the exception contained in Item I of the previous
Paragraph shall be extinguished.
Paragraph 3. In the case that a compulsory license is granted on the grounds of abuse of
economic power, the licensee who proposes local manufacture shall be assured a period, limited tothe provisions of Article 74, to import the object of the license, provided that it was introduced onto themarket directly by the titleholder or with his consent.
Paragraph 4. In the case of importation to exploit a patent and in the case of importation as
provided for in the preceding Paragraph, third parties shall also be allowed to import a productmanufactured according to a process or product patent, provided that it has been introduced onto themarket by the titleholder or with his consent.
Paragraph 5. The compulsory license that is the subject of Paragraph 1 shall only be required
when 3 (three) years have elapsed since the patent was granted.
Article 69. A compulsory license shall not be granted if, on the date of the application, the
titleholder:
I – justifies the non-use based on legitimate reasons;II – proves that serious and effective preparations for exploitation have been made;III – justifies the failure to manufacture or to market on grounds of an obstacle of legal nature;
Article 70. The compulsory license shall also be granted when all the following circumstances
apply:
I – there is a situation of dependency of one patent with regard to another;II – the object of the dependent patent constitutes a substantial technical progress with regard to
the earlier patent; andIP/N/1/BRA/I/1
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III – the titleholder fails to reach agreement with the patentholder of the dependent patent on the
exploitation of the earlier patent.
Paragraph 1. For the purposes of this Article, a dependent patent is considered to be a patent
whose exploitation necessarily depends on the use of the object of an earlier patent.
Paragraph 2. For purposes of this Article, a process patent may be considered dependent on the
respective product patent, and likewise, a product patent may be dependent on a process patent.
Paragraph 3. The patentholder licensed pursuant to the provisions of this Article shall have the
right to a crossed compulsory license on the dependent patent.
Article 71. In cases of national emergency or of public interest, as declared in an act of the Federal
Executive Power, and provided the patentholder or his licensee does not fulfill such need, a
temporary and non-exclusive compulsory license for exploiting the patent may be granted, ex officio ,
without prejudice to the rights of the respective titleholder.
Sole Paragraph. The act of granting the license shall establish its term and the possibility of
extension.
Article 72. Compulsory licenses shall always be granted on a non-exclusive basis, and
sublicensing shall not be permitted.
Article 73. The application for a compulsory license shall be formulated upon indication of the
conditions offered to the patentholder.
Paragraph 1. After an application for a license has been submitted, the titleholder shall be notified
to submit comments within a period of 60 (sixty) days, at the end of which, if the titleholder has not
submitted comments, the proposal shall be deemed to have been accepted under the conditions
offered.
Paragraph 2. An applicant for a license who alleges abuse of patent rights or abuse of economic
power must attach documentation that proves it.
Paragraph 3. In the case that the compulsory license is applied for on grounds of failure to exploit,
the patentholder shall prove the exploitation.
Paragraph 4. If the application is contested, the INPI may conduct the necessary inquires,
including the establishment of a committee, which may include specialists who are not on the staff ofthat autarky, to arbitrate the remuneration to be paid to the titleholder.
Paragraph 5. The agencies and entities of direct or indirect, federal, state, and municipal public
administration shall furnish the INPI with information as requested for purposes of assisting in the
arbitration of the remuneration.
Paragraph 6. In the arbitration of the remuneration, the circumstances of each case shall be
considered, and it shall consider, necessarily, the economic value of the license granted.
Paragraph 7. After evidence has been gathered in the case, the INPI shall decide about the
granting and the conditions of the compulsory license within a period of 60 (sixty) days.
Paragraph 8. The appeal of the decision that granted a compulsory license shall not have
suspensive effect.
Article 74. Unless in case of legitimate reasons, the licensee must begin the exploitation of the
object of the patent within a period of 1 (one) year from the granting of the license, and an interruptionfor a same period of time shall be allowed.
Paragraph 1. The titleholder may require the cancellation of the license when the provision of this
Article is not observed.
Paragraph 2. The licensee shall be invested with full powers to take action to defend the patent.
Paragraph 3. After a compulsory license has been granted, the assignment of such license shall
only be allowed together with the assignment, transfer or leasing of the part of the enterprise thatexploits it.IP/N/1/BRA/I/1
Page 13
CHAPTER IX
PATENT OF INTEREST TO NATIONAL DEFENSE
Article 75. A patent application originating in Brazil and whose object is of national defense interest
shall be processed as confidential and shall not be subject to the publications established in this Law.
Paragraph 1. The INPI shall forward the application immediately to the competent agency of the
Executive Power, which shall make a statement on its confidentiality within a period of 60 (sixty) days.
If this period elapses without any statement of the competent agency, the application shall be
normally processed.
Paragraph 2. The filing in another country of a patent whose object has been deemed of national
defense interest is prohibited, as is any disclosure thereof, unless express authorization from thecompetent agency.
Paragraph 3. The exploitation and the assignment of the application or patent that is of national
defense interest are conditioned upon prior authorization from the competent agency, and
indemnification is assured whenever the rights of the applicant or titleholder are restricted.
CHAPTER X
CERTIFICATE OF ADDITION OF INVENTION
Article 76. The applicant or the titleholder of an invention patent may require, upon payment of a
specific fee, a certificate of addition in order to protect an improvement or development that has been
introduced into the object of the invention, even if devoid of inventive step, provided the subject matteris included in the same inventive concept.
Paragraph 1. When the principal application has already been published, the application for a
certificate of addition shall be published immediately.
Paragraph 2. The examination of an application for a certificate of addition shall comply with the
provisions of Articles 30 through 37, except as provided in the preceding Paragraph.
Paragraph 3. The application for a certificate of addition shall be denied if its object does not
exhibit the same inventive concept.
Paragraph 4. The applicant may, within the period provided for an appeal and by paying the
applicable fees, require the conversion of the application for a certificate of addition into a patentapplication, thereby benefiting from the filing date of the application for a certificate.
Article 77. The certificate of addition is an accessory of the patent, bears the final date of the term
thereof, and accompanies it for all legal effects.
Sole Paragraph. In nullity proceedings, the titleholder may require that the subject matter of the
certificate of addition be analyzed in order to determine the possibility of its subsistence, withoutprejudice of the term of the patent.
CHAPTER XI
EXTINGUISHMENT OF A PATENT
Article 78. A patent is extinguished:
I – on expiration of the term;II – on renunciation by its titleholder, without prejudice to the rights of other parties;III – on forfeiture;
IV – on failure to pay the annual fee, within the time limits stipulated in Paragraph 2 of Article 84,
and in Article 87; and
V – on non-compliance with the provisions of Article 217.Sole Paragraph. Once the patent has been extinguished, its object falls into the public domain.
Article 79. The renunciation shall only be accepted if it does not prejudice the rights of third parties.IP/N/1/BRA/I/1
Page 14
Article 80. The patent shall be forfeited, ex officio  or at the request by any party having a legitimate
interest, if, after 2 (two) years have elapsed since the granting of the first compulsory license, that
time period has not been sufficient to prevent or remedy the abuse or disuse, unless there are
justifiable reasons.
Paragraph 1. The patent shall be forfeited when, on the date of the request for forfeiture or ex
officio  institution of the respective proceedings, exploitation has not yet begun.
Paragraph 2. In forfeiture proceedings instituted upon request, the INPI may proceed if the
applicant waives it.
Article 81. The titleholder shall be notified upon publication to submit comments, within a period of
60 (sixty) days, and the burden of proof as regards exploitation shall lie with him.
Article 82. The decision shall be issued within 60 (sixty) days from the end of the period mentioned
in the preceding Article
Article 83. The decision on forfeiture shall produce effects from the date of the request or of the
publication of the ex officio  institution of proceedings.
CHAPTER XII
ANNUAL FEE
Article 84. The applicant and the patentholder are subject to payment of annual fee since the
beginning of the third year after the filing date.
Paragraph 1. Anticipated payment of the annual fee shall be regulated by the INPI.Paragraph 2. Payment shall be made within the first 3 (three) months of each annual period, but it
may also be made within the following 6 (six) months, independently from any notification, upon
payment of an additional fee.
Article 85. The provisions of the previous Article apply to international applications filed under a
treaty in force in Brazil, and the payment of the annual fees that fell due prior to the date of entry intothe national processing shall be made within a period of 3 (three) months of that date.
Article 86. The failure to pay the annual fee, in accordance with provisions of Articles 84 and 85,
shall result in the dismissal of the application or extinguishment of the patent.
CHAPTER XIII
RESTORATION
Article 87. The patent application or the patent may be restored, if the applicant or titleholder so
requests, within 3 (three) months from the notification of the dismissal of the application or the
extinguishment of the patent, upon  payment of a specific fee.
CHAPTER XIV
INVENTIONS AND UTILITY MODELS CREATED BY EMPLOYEES OR SERVICE
PROVIDERS
Article 88. The invention and the utility model belong exclusively to the employer when they result
from an employment contract being performed in Brazil and that has research or the inventive step asits object, or if such results from the nature of the services for which the employee was hired.
Paragraph 1. Except as otherwise stipulated by contract, the retribution for the work to which this
Article refers is limited to the agreed salary.
Paragraph 2. In the absence of proof to the contrary, the invention or utility model on which a
patent is applied for by the employee, up to 1 (one) year of the extinguishment of the employmentrelationship, is considered to have been developed during the term of the contract.IP/N/1/BRA/I/1
Page 15
Article 89. The employer, the patentholder, may grant the employee, the author of the invention or
improvement, a share in the economic gains resulting from the exploitation of the patent, bynegotiating with the interested party or in accordance with the rules of the company.
Sole Paragraph. The share referred to in this Article does not incorporate, in any way, into the
salary of the employee.
Article 90. The invention or the utility model developed by an employee shall belong exclusively to
him, provided that it is unrelated to the employment contract and does not result from the use ofresources, means, data, materials, facilities or equipment of the employer.
Article 91. The property of an invention or utility model shall be common, in equal parts, when it
results from the personal contribution of the employee and resources, data, means, materials,facilities or equipment of the employer, in the absence of express contract provision to the contrary.
Paragraph 1. When there is more than one employee, the portion that corresponds to them shall
be divided equally among all of them, except as agreed to the contrary.
Paragraph 2. The employer is guaranteed the exclusive right of license for exploitation, and the
employee is assured the fair remuneration.
Paragraph 3. In the absence of an agreement, the exploitation of the object of the patent must be
started by the employer within a period of 1 (one) year of the date of granting, under penalty of theproperty of the patent being transferred as an exclusive right to the employee, except where there arelegitimate reasons for the failure to exploit.
Paragraph 4. In the event of an assignment, any of the co-titleholders, under the same conditions,
may exercise the right of preference.
Article 92. The provisions of the preceding Articles apply, where applicable, to relationships
between an autonomous worker or a trainee and the contracting company, and between contractingand contracted companies.
Article 93. The provisions of this Chapter apply, where applicable, to the direct, indirect and
foundational, federal, state or municipal entities of the Public Administration.
Sole Paragraph. In the event that is the subject of Article 88, the inventor shall be assured, in the
manner and under the conditions set forth in the  statutes or internal regulations of the entity to which
this Article refers, an award of part of the value of the benefits gained from the application or patent,
as an incentive.
TITLE II
INDUSTRIAL DESIGNS
CHAPTER I
OWNERSHIP
Article 94. The author shall be assured the right to obtain registration of an industrial design that
confers property on him, under conditions established in this Law.
Sole Paragraph. The provisions of Articles 6 and 7 apply to the registration of industrial designs,
where applicable.
CHAPTER II
REGISTRABILITY
SECTION I
REGISTRABLE INDUSTRIAL DESIGNS
Article 95. An industrial design is considered to be an ornamental plastic form of an object or an
ornamental arrangement of lines and colors which may be applied to a product, providing a new and
original visual result in its external configuration and that may serve as a model for industrialmanufacture.IP/N/1/BRA/I/1
Page 16
Article 96. The industrial design is considered as new when it is not comprised in the state of the
art.
Paragraph 1. The state of the art consists of everything made available to the public prior to the
filing date of the application, in Brazil or abroad, by use or by any other means, without prejudice to
the provisions of Paragraph 3 of this Article and of Article 99.
Paragraph 2. For the sole purpose of determining novelty, the entire content of an application for a
patent or for registration filed in Brazil, and not yet published, shall be considered to be included in thestate of the art as from the date of filing, or of claimed priority, provided it comes to be published, even
if subsequently.
Paragraph 3. The industrial design shall not be considered to be included in the state of the art if
disclosure occurred during the 180 (one hundred and eighty) days preceding the filing date of theapplication or of the claimed priority, if made in the situations outlined in Items I to III of Article 12.
Article 97. The industrial design is considered to be original when it results in a distinctive visual
configuration, in relation to other prior objects.
Sole Paragraph. The original visual result may be derived from the combination of known
elements.
Article 98. No purely artistic work is considered to be an industrial design.
SECTION II
PRIORITY
Article 99. The provisions of Article 16, except for the time limit defined in Paragraph 3 of that
Article, which shall be of 90 (ninety) days, apply to the application for registration, where applicable.
SECTION III
NON-REGISTRABLE INDUSTRIAL DESIGNS
Article 100. It is not registrable as an industrial design:
I – anything contrary to morals and standards of respectability or that offends the honor or image
of persons, or attempts freedom of conscience, belief, religious cult or ideas and feelings worthy of
respect and veneration;
II – the common or ordinary necessary shape of the object or, yet, that shape which is essentially
determined by technical or functional considerations.
CHAPTER III
APPLICATIONS FOR REGISTRATION
SECTION I
FILING OF APPLICATIONS
Article 101. An application for registration, under the conditions stipulated by the INPI, shall
contain:
I – the request;II – the specifications, if applicable;III – the claims, if applicable;IV – drawings or photographs;V – field of application of the object; and
VI – proof of payment of the filing fee.
Sole Paragraph. The documents that comprise the application for registration shall be submitted in
Portuguese language.IP/N/1/BRA/I/1
Page 17
Article 102. Once the application have been submitted, it shall be subjected to a preliminary formal
examination and, if found to be properly documented, shall be docketed, considered the filing date tobe the date of submission.
Article 103. The application that does not formally attend the provisions of Article 101, but which
contains sufficient data related to the applicant, to the industrial design and to the author, may besubmitted, against dated receipt, to the INPI, that shall establish the requirements to be satisfied,within 5 (five) days, under penalty of being considered non-existent.
Sole Paragraph. Once the requirements have been satisfied, the filing shall be considered as
made on the date the application was submitted.
SECTION II
CONDITIONS OF APPLICATIONS
Article 104. The application for industrial design registration shall refer to a single object, of which
a plurality of variations shall be permitted, provided that they are intended for the same purpose andall retain the same preponderant distinctive characteristic, each application limited to a maximum of
20 (twenty) variations.
Sole Paragraph. The design shall clearly and sufficiently represent the object and its variations, if
any, in such a manner as to permit its reproduction by a technician versed in the subject.
Article 105. If secrecy is requested pursuant to Paragraph 1 of Article 106, the application may be
withdrawn within up 90 (ninety) days from the date of the filing.
Sole Paragraph. The withdrawal of an earlier filing without the production of any effects shall
confer priority on the immediately subsequent filing.
SECTION III
PROCESSING AND EXAMINATION OF THE APPLICATIONS
Article 106. Once the application for an industrial design registration has been filed and the
provisions of Articles 100, 101 and 104 have been observed, it shall automatically be published and
the registration shall be granted simultaneously, being issued the respective certificate.
Paragraph 1. At the request of the applicant, made at the time of the filing, an application may be
kept secret for a period of 180 (one hundred and eighty) days from the filing date, after which it shallbe processed.
Paragraph 2. If the applicant benefits from the provisions of Article 99, the submission of the
priority document for processing the application is to be waited.
Paragraph 3. If the provisions of Articles 101 and 104 are not satisfied, a demand shall be drawn
up and the applicant shall reply it within 60 (sixty) days, under penalty of having the applicationdefinitively dismissed.
Paragraph 4. If the provisions of Article 100 are not satisfied, the application for registration shall
be denied.
CHAPTER IV
GRANT AND TERM OF THE REGISTRATION
Article 107. The certificate shall contain the number and the title, name of the author – with due
regard for provisions of Paragraph 4 of Article 6, the name, the nationality and the domicile of thetitleholder, the term, the drawings, the data related to foreign priority, and, if any, the specificationsand claims.
Article 108. The registration shall remain in force for a period of 10 (ten) years from the date of
filing, being extendable for 3 (three) successive periods of 5 (five) years each.IP/N/1/BRA/I/1
Page 18
Paragraph 1. The request for extension shall be made during the last year of the term of the
registration, accompanied by proof of payment of the respective fee.
Paragraph 2. If the request for extension has not been formulated until the final term of
registration, the titleholder may do so within the following 180 (one hundred and eighty) days, against
payment of an additional fee.
CHAPTER V
PROTECTION CONFERRED BY THE REGISTRATION
Article 109. The property of an industrial design is acquired by a validly granted registration.
Sole Paragraph. The provisions of Article 42 and Items I, II and IV of Article 43 apply to an
industrial design registration, where applicable.
Article 110. A person who, in good faith, prior to the filing date or priority date of an application for
registration was exploiting the object thereof in this country, shall be assured the right to continue theexploitation, without onus, in the same manner and under the same conditions as before.
Paragraph 1. The right conferred under this Article may only be assigned together with the
business or company, or part of thereof, that is directly related to the exploitation of the object of the
registration, by transfer or leasing.
Paragraph 2. The right that is subject of this Article shall not be assured to a person who gained
knowledge of the object of the registration through disclosure under Paragraph 3 of Article 96,provided that the application was filed within a period of 6 (six) months from disclosure.
CHAPTER VI
EXAMINATION OF THE MERITS
Article 111. The titleholder of an industrial design may request the examination of the object of
registration, at any time during the term of the registration, in relation to novelty and originalityaspects.
Sole Paragraph. The INPI shall issue an opinion on the merits which, if it concludes that at least
one of the requirements defined in Articles 95 to 98 is absent, shall serve as grounds for ex officio
institution of procedure for nullity of the registration.
CHAPTER VII
NULLITY OF REGISTRATION
SECTION I
GENERAL PROVISIONS
Article 112. A registration granted contrary to the provisions of this Law is null.
Paragraph 1. Nullity of the registration shall produce effects from the filing date of the application.Paragraph 2. In the event of non-compliance with the provisions of Article 94, the author may,
alternatively, demand adjudication of the registration.
SECTION II
ADMINISTRATIVE NULLITY PROCEEDINGS
Article 113. Nullity of a registration shall be administratively declared if it has been granted in
violation to the provisions of Articles 94 to 98.
Paragraph 1. Nullity proceedings may be instituted ex officio  or at the request of any person having
a legitimate interest, within a period of 5 (five) years from the date of granting of the registration,without prejudice of the case referred to in the Sole Paragraph of Article 111.IP/N/1/BRA/I/1
Page 19
Paragraph 2. The request or the ex officio institution of proceedings shall suspend the effects of
the granting of the registration if submitted or published within 60 (sixty) days from the grant.
Article 114. The titleholder shall be notified to submit his comments within a period of 60 (sixty)
days from the date of publication.
Article 115. After the time limit established in the preceding Article has elapsed, whether or not
comments were submitted, the INPI shall issue an opinion and notify the titleholder and the applicantto submit their comments within the common period of 60 (sixty) days.
Article 116. After the time limit established in the preceding Article has elapsed, even if no
comments have been submitted, the case shall be decided by the President of the INPI, whereupon
the administrative jurisdiction shall be ended.
Article 117. Nullity proceedings shall continue even if the registration has been extinguished.
SECTION III
JUDICIAL NULLITY PROCEEDINGS
Article 118. The provisions of Articles 56 and 57 shall apply to judicial nullity proceedings of an
industrial design registration, where applicable.
CHAPTER VIII
EXTINGUISHMENT OF THE REGISTRATION
Article 119. A registration shall be extinguished:
I – on expiration of the term;II – on renunciation by its titleholder, without prejudice to the rights of third parties;
III – on failure to pay the fee stipulated in Articles 108 and 120, or
IV – on non-compliance with the provisions of Article 217.
CHAPTER IX
FIVE-YEAR FEE
Article 120. The titleholder of a registration is subject to payment of a five-year fee since the
second five year period from the filing date.
Paragraph 1. Payment of the second five-year period shall be made during the 5th (fifth) year of the
term of the registration.
Paragraph 2. Payment for all other five-year periods shall be made at the time of the request for
extension referred to in Article 108.
Paragraph 3. Payment of five-year fees may also be made within 6 (six) months following the
period established in the preceding Paragraph, upon payment of an additional fee.
CHAPTER X
FINAL PROVISIONS
Article 121. Provisions of Articles 58 to 63 apply, where applicable, to the subject matter covered
by this Title, and the rights of the employee or of the service provider are governed by the provisionsof Articles 88 to 93.IP/N/1/BRA/I/1
Page 20
TITLE III
MARKS
CHAPTER I
REGISTRABILITY
SECTION I
SIGNS REGISTRABLE AS MARKS
Article 122. Any distinctive visually perceivable signs that are not included in legal prohibitions
shall be eligible for registration as a mark.
Article 123. For the purposes of this Law, the following definitions apply:
I – product or service mark: one which is used to distinguish a product or service from another that
is identical, similar, or alike, but of different origin.
II – certification mark: one that is used to attest to the conformity of a product or service with
certain technical standards or specifications, particularly regarding its quality, nature, material used
and methodology employed; and
III – collective mark: one that is used to identify products or services provided by members of a
certain entity.
SECTION II
SIGNS NOT REGISTRABLE AS MARKS
Article 124. The following are not registrable as marks:
I – official, public, national, foreign or international escutcheons, coats of arms, medals, flags,
emblems, badges and monuments, as well as the respective designations, figures, or imitations;
II – letters, numerals and dates, standing alone, except when endowed with sufficiently distinctive
form;
III – expressions, figures, drawings or any other signs  that are contrary to morals and standards of
respectability or that offend the honor or image of persons or attempt freedom of conscience, belief,
religious cult or ideas and feelings worthy of respect and veneration;
IV – designations or initials of public entities or agencies, when registration is not required by the
public entity or agency itself;
V – reproductions or imitations of a characteristic or differentiating element of a title of an
establishment or a name of a company belonging to third parties, likely to cause confusion or
association with such distinctive signs;
VI – signs of generic, necessary, common, ordinary or simply descriptive character, when related
to the product or service to be distinguished, or those commonly employed to designate acharacteristic of the product or service regarding its nature, nationality, weight, value, quality and timeof production or rendering of the service, except when endowed with a sufficiently distinctive form;
VII – signs or expressions employed only as a means of advertising;
VIII – colors and their names, unless arranged or combined in a peculiar and distinctive manner;IX – geographical indications, imitations thereof likely to cause confusion, or signs that may falsely
induce a geographical indication;
X – signs that induce to a false indication regarding the origin, source, nature, quality or usefulness
of the product or service to which the mark is applied;
XI – reproductions or imitations of an official seal normally used to guarantee a standard of any
kind or nature;
XII – reproductions or imitations of a sign that has been registered as a collective or certification
mark by a third party, with due regard to the provisions of Article 154;IP/N/1/BRA/I/1
Page 21
XIII – names, awards, or symbol of a sporting, artistic, cultural, social, political, economic or
technical event that is official or officially sanctioned, as well as an imitation likely to create confusion,unless authorized by the competent authority or entity that is promoting the event.
XIV – reproductions or imitations of titles, policies, coins, and paper currency of the Union, the
States, the Federal District, the Territories, the Municipalities, or of a country;
XV – personal names or signatures thereof, family names and patronymics, or the image of third
parties, except with the consent of the titleholder, his heirs or successors;
XVI – well-known pseudonyms or nicknames, individual or collective artistic names, except with
the consent of the titleholder, his heirs or successors;
XVII – literary, artistic or scientific work, as well as the titles protected by copyright and likely to
cause confusion or association, except with the consent of the author or titleholder;
XVIII – technical terms used in industry, science and art, that are related to the product or service
to be distinguished;
XIX – reproductions or imitations, in whole or in part, even with an addition, of a mark registered by
another party, to distinguish or certify an identical, similar, or alike product or service, likely to cause
confusion or association with the other party’s mark;
XX – duality of marks of a single titleholder for the same product or service, except when, in the
case of marks of the same nature, they are endowed with a sufficiently distinctive form;
XXI – the necessary, common, or ordinary form of the product or packing, or also that one which
cannot be dissociated from a technical effect;
XXII – an object that is protected by a third party industrial design registration; and
XXIII – signs that imitate or reproduce, wholly or in part, a mark of which the applicant could not be
unaware because of his activity, and whose titleholder is headquartered or domiciled in nationalterritory or in a country with which Brazil has an agreement or that assures reciprocity of treatment, ifthe mark is intended to distinguish an identical, similar or alike product or service likely to causeconfusion or association with that other party’s mark.
SECTION III
FAMOUS MARKS
Article 125. A mark that is registered in Brazil and considered to be famous shall be assured
special protection in all branches of activity.
SECTION IV
WELL-KNOWN MARKS
Article 126. The well-known mark within its branch of activity pursuant to Article 6 bis (I) of the Paris
Convention for Protection of Industrial Property enjoys special protection, regardless of whether it has
already been filed or registered in Brazil.
Paragraph 1. The protection that is the subject of this Article also applies to service marks.
Paragraph 2. The INPI may ex officio  deny  a request for registration of a mark that wholly or
partially reproduces or imitates a well-know mark.
CHAPTER II
PRIORITY
Article 127. The application for registration of a mark that has been filed in a country that maintains
an agreement with Brazil or in an international organization, when such produces the effect of a
national filing, shall be assured the right to priority, within the time limits established in the agreement,
and the filing is neither invalidated nor prejudiced by events occurring within those time limits.
Paragraph 1. The claim of priority shall be made at the time of filing and may be supplemented
within 60 (sixty) days with other priorities prior to the date of filing in Brazil.IP/N/1/BRA/I/1
Page 22
Paragraph 2. The claim of priority shall be proved by a proper document from the country of origin
containing the number, the date, and the copy of the application or registration, accompanied by afree translation, for whose content the applicant shall be solely responsible.
Paragraph 3. If not done at the time of the filing, the substantiation must occur within up 4 (four)
months of the filing, under penalty of forfeiture of the priority.
Paragraph 4. In cases of priority obtained by transfer, the pertinent document must be submitted
with the priority document itself.
CHAPTER III
APPLICANTS FOR REGISTRATION
Article 128. Natural or legal persons under public or private law may apply for the registration of a
mark.
Paragraph 1. Persons under private law may only apply for registration of a mark that relates to the
activity in with they actually and lawfully engage, either directly or through companies  they directly or
indirectly control, declaring that condition on the application itself, under the penalties of law.
Paragraph 2. Registration of a collective mark may be applied for by a legal person that represents
the collectivity, which may engage in an activity other than that pursued by its members.
Paragraph 3. Registration of a certification mark may only be applied for by a person who has no
direct commercial or industrial interest in the product or service being certified.
Paragraph 4. The claim of priority does not exempt the petition from the application of the
provisions set forth in this Title.
CHAPTER IV
RIGHTS OVER A MARK
SECTION I
ACQUISITION
Article 129. The property of a mark is acquired by means of registration, when validly granted
pursuant to the provisions of this Law, and its exclusive use throughout the national territory isassured to the titleholder, with due regard, as to collective and certification marks, to the provision inArticles 147 and 148.
Paragraph 1. Every person who, in good faith on the priority or filing date, has been using an
identical or similar mark in this country for at least 6 (six) months to distinguish or certify an identical,
similar or alike product or service shall have the right of preference for the registration.
Paragraph 2. The right of preference may only be assigned together with the business of the
company, or part thereof, that has a direct relation with the use of the mark, by transfer or leasing.
SECTION II
PROTECTION CONFERRED BY THE REGISTRATION
Article 130. The titleholder of a mark or the applicant is further assured the right to:
I – assign his registration or application for registration;II – license its use;III – safeguard its material integrity or reputation.
Article 131. The protection that is the subject of this Law embraces the use of the mark on papers,
printed matter, advertising, and documents related to the activities of the titleholder.
Article 132. The titleholder of a mark may not:
I – prevent merchants or distributors from using their own distinctive signs along with the mark of
the product, in its promotion and commercialization;IP/N/1/BRA/I/1
Page 23
II – prevent manufacturers of accessories from using the mark to indicate the purpose of the
product, provided that fair competition practices are followed;
III – prevent the free circulation of the product placed on the domestic market by himself or by
another with his consent, except as provided in Paragraphs 3 and 4 of Article 68; and
IV – prevent the mention of the mark in a speech, scientific or literary work, or in any other
publication, provided it is done without commercial connotation and without detriment to its distinctivecharacter.
CHAPTER V
TERM, ASSIGNMENT AND ENTRIES
SECTION I
TERM
Article 133. The registration of a mark shall remain in force for a period of 10 (ten) years from the
date of granting of the registration, and the period may be extended for equal and successive periods.
Paragraph 1. The application for extension shall be made during the last year of the term of the
registration, accompanied by proof of payment of the respective fee.
Paragraph 2. If the request for extension is not made before the term of the registration, the
titleholder may do so during the following 6 (six) months, by payment of an additional fee.
Paragraph 3. Extension will not be granted if the provision in Article 128 is not observed.
SECTION II
ASSIGNMENT
Article 134. The registration application and the registration may be assigned, provided the
assignee satisfies the legal requirements for applying to register it.
Article 135. The assignment must comprehend all the registrations or applications, in the name of
the assignor, for the same or similar marks, related to an identical, similar, or alike product or service;
under penalty of having the registrations cancelled or the unassigned applications dismissed.
SECTION III
ENTRIES
Article 136. The INPI shall make the following entries:
I – of the assignment, containing the full identification of the assignee;
II – of any limitation or onus that applies to the application or registration; andIII – of changes in the name, headquarter or address of the applicant or titleholder.
Article 137. Entries shall become effective with regard to third parties beginning on the date of their
publication.
Article 138. The decisions may be appealed when:
I – it denies annotation of an assignment;
II – it cancels the registration or dismisses the application, under the terms of Article 135.
SECTION IV
LICENSE OF USE
Article 139. The titleholder of a registration or the applicant for registration may enter into a license
contract for use of the mark without prejudice to his rights to exercise effective control over the
specifications, nature and quality of the respective products or services.IP/N/1/BRA/I/1
Page 24
Sole Paragraph. The licensee may be invested by the titleholder with full powers to take action to
defend the mark, without prejudice to his own rights.
Article 140. The license contract must be recorded with the INPI in order to become effective with
regard to third parties.
Paragraph 1. The recording shall become effective with regard to third parties from the date of its
publication.
Paragraph 2. For purposes of validating proof of use, it shall not be necessary that the license
contract be recorded with the INPI.
Article 141. A decision that denies the recording of a licensing contract may be appealed.
CHAPTER VI
LOSS OF RIGHTS
Article 142. The registration of the mark shall be extinguished:
I – on expiration of the term;II – on renunciation, which may be full or partial regarding the products or services indicated by the
mark;
III – on forfeiture; orIV – on non-compliance with the provisions of Article 217.
Article 143. A registration shall be forfeited upon request by a person having a legitimate interest if,
after 5 (five) years have elapsed since granting, on the date of the request:
I – the use of the mark has not been initiated in Brazil; or
II – the use of the mark has been interrupted for more than 5 (five) consecutive years, or if, in the
same period of time, the mark has been used with a modification that entails alteration of its originaldistinctive character as appears on the registration certificate.
Paragraph 1. Forfeiture will not occur if the titleholder justifies the failure to use the mark for
legitimate reasons.
Paragraph 2. The titleholder shall be notified to submit comments within a period of 60 (sixty) days,
and the burden of proof, as regards use of the mark or justification of failure to use it for legitimatereasons, shall rest with him.
Article 144. The use of the mark must comprehend products or services listed on the certificate,
under penalty of having the registration partially forfeited as regards products or services not similar oralike to those for which the mark is proven to have been used.
Article 145. Requests for forfeiture shall not be considered if the use of the mark was proven or
failure to use it was justified in a prior proceeding requested less than 5 (five) years previously.
Article 146. A decision that declares or denies forfeiture may be appealed.
CHAPTER VII
COLLECTIVE AND CERTIFICATION MARKS
Article 147. The application for registration of a collective mark shall contain regulations on
utilization, that provide conditions and prohibitions on the use of the mark.
Sole Paragraph. The regulations on utilization, when not accompanying the application, must be
docketed within 60 (sixty) days from the filing date, under the penalty of having the applicationdefinitively dismissed.
Article 148. The application of a registration of a certification mark shall contain:
I – the characteristics of the product or service that is the object of certification; and
II – the control measures that will be adopted by the titleholder.IP/N/1/BRA/I/1
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Sole Paragraph. If the documentation referred to in Items I and II of this Article is not submitted
with the application, it must be docketed within a period of 60 (sixty) days, under the penalty of havingthe application definitively dismissed.
Article 149. The INPI must be notified of any change in the regulations on utilization, by means of
docketed petition containing all the modified conditions, under penalty of not being considered.
Article 150. The use of the mark does not require a license, being sufficient its authorization in the
regulations on utilization.
Article 151. In addition to the causes of extinguishment set forth in Article 142, the registration of a
collective or certification mark is extinguished when:
I – the entity ceases to exist; orII – the mark is used under conditions other than those stipulated in the regulations on utilization.
Article 152. Renunciation of the registration of a collective mark shall only be permitted when
applied for in accordance with the social contract or statutes of the entity itself, or in accordance withthe regulations for utilization.
Article 153. The forfeiture of the registration shall be declared if the collective mark is not used by
more than one authorized person, with due regard for provisions of Articles 143 to 146.
Article 154. The collective and the certification marks that were once in use and whose
registrations have been extinguished may not be registered in the name of a third party until 5 (five)years have elapsed since the extinguishment of the registration.
CHAPTER VIII
FILING
Article 155. The application must refer to a single distinctive sign and shall, subject to the
conditions stipulated by the INPI, contain the following:
I – the application;II – labels, if applicable; and
III – proof of payment of the filing fee.
Sole Paragraph. The application and any documents accompanying it shall be submitted in the
Portuguese language, and if any document is in foreign language, its free translation must besubmitted at the time of filing or within the following sixty (60) days, under penalty of not having thedocument considered.
Article 156. When the application has been submitted, it shall be subject to a preliminary formal
examination, and if found to be properly documented, it shall be docketed, and the filing date of the
application shall be considered as the date of submission.
Article 157. Applications that do not formally comply with the provisions of Article 155, but which
contains sufficient data related to the applicant, the mark sign and its class, may be delivered, againstdated receipt, to the INPI, which shall stipulate the requirements to be satisfied by the applicant within5 (five) days, under penalty of being deemed non-existent.
Sole Paragraph. Once the conditions have been satisfied, the filing shall be considered to have
been made at the date the application was submitted.
CHAPTER IX
EXAMINATION
Article 158. After being docketed, the application shall be published so that opposition may be
presented within a period of 60 (sixty) days.
Paragraph 1. The applicant shall be notified of the opposition and may submit comments within a
period of 60 (sixty) days.IP/N/1/BRA/I/1
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Paragraph 2. The opposition, the administrative nullity proceedings, or the judicial nullity
proceedings shall not be considered if, based on Item XXIII of Article 124, or on Article 126, the filing
of the application for registration of the mark pursuant to this Law is not proven within a period of 60
(sixty) days from the interposition.
Article 159. After the period for opposition has elapsed or, if an opposition was presented, at the
end of the period allowed for comments, the examination shall be done, and in its course demandsmay be formulated, and their responses must be submitted within a period of 60 (sixty) days.
Paragraph 1. If an applicant does not respond to the demand, the application shall be definitively
dismissed.
Paragraph 2. If there is response to the demand, even if it has not been satisfied, or its formulation
is contested, the examination shall be continued
Article 160. When the examination has been concluded, a decision shall be handed down, either
approving or rejecting the application for registration.
CHAPTER X
ISSUE OF REGISTRATION CERTIFICATE
Article 161. The registration certificate shall be issued after the application has been approved and
proof of payment of the appropriate fees has been furnished.
Article 162. Payment of the fees, and its proof, related to the issue of the registration certificate
and to the first decade of its term, shall be done within a period of 60 (sixty) days of approval.
Sole Paragraph. The fee may also be paid and proven within 30 (thirty) days of the time limit
stipulated in this Article, independently of any notification, upon payment of a specific fee, under
penalty of having the application definitively dismissed.
Article 163. The registration certificate shall be deemed to have been granted on the date of
publication of the respective act.
Article 164. The certificate shall contain the mark, the number and date of registration, name,
nationality and domicile of the titleholder, the products or services, the registration characteristics and
the foreign priority.
CHAPTER XI
NULLITY OF REGISTRATIONS
SECTION I
GENERAL PROVISIONS
Article 165. A registration that is not granted in accordance with the provisions of this Law is null.
Sole Paragraph. Nullity of the registration may be total or partial, and a condition for partial nullity
shall be the fact that the subsisting part may be considered registrable.
Article 166. The titleholder of a mark registered in a country that is a signatory of the Convention of
the Union of Paris for the Protection of Industrial Property, may, alternatively, claim by means of
judicial proceedings, the adjudication of the registration as set forth in Article 6 septies (1) of that
Convention.
Article 167. The declaration of nullity shall produce effects beginning on the filing date.
SECTION II
ADMINISTRATIVE NULLITY PROCEEDINGS
Article 168. Nullity of the registration shall be administratively declared when it has been granted in
violation of the provisions of this Law.IP/N/1/BRA/I/1
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Article 169. Nullity proceedings may be instituted either ex officio or at the request of  any person
having a legitimate interest, within a period of 180 (one hundred and eighty) days of the date of the
issue of the registration certificate.
Article 170. The titleholder shall be formally notified to submit his comments within a period of 60
(sixty) days.
Article 171. After the time limit established in the preceding Article has elapsed, even if no
comments have been submitted, the case shall be decided by the President of the INPI, whereuponthe administrative jurisdiction shall be ended.
Article 172. Nullity proceedings shall continue even if the registration has been extinguished.
SECTION III
JUDICIAL NULLITY PROCEEDINGS
Article 173. Judicial nullity proceedings may be proposed either by the INPI or by any person
having a legitimate interest.
Sole Paragraph. The judge may, in the course of the judicial nullity proceedings, provisionally
order suspension of the effects of registration and of the use of the mark, provided the proper
procedural requirements have been satisfied.
Article 174. Judicial proceedings to declare the nullity of a registration prescribe within 5 (five)
years of the date of registration.
Article 175. Judicial nullity proceedings of the registration shall be filed within the Federal Court
system, and the INPI, when not the plaintiff, shall participate in them.
Paragraph 1. The defendant titleholder shall have a period of sixty (60) days to reply.
Paragraph 2. Once the decision on the judicial nullity proceedings has become final, the INPI shall
punish the entry thereof, so that third parties may be informed.
TITLE IV
GEOGRAPHICAL INDICATIONS
Article 176. A geographical indication shall be an indication of source or a denomination of origin.
Article 177. Indication of source shall mean the geographic name of a country, city, region or
locality in its territory, which has become known as a center of extraction, production or manufactureof a given product or of provision of a given service.
Article 178. Denomination of origin shall be the geographical name of a country, city, region or
locality in its territory, that designates a product or service whose qualities or characteristics are due
exclusively or essentially to the geographical environment, including natural and human factors.
Article 179. The protection shall be extended to the graphical or figurative representation of a
geographical indication, as well as the geographical representation of a country, city, region or localityin its territory whose name is a geographical indication.
Article 180. Once a geographical name has fallen into the common use as designating a product
or service, it shall not be considered to be a geographical indication.
Article 181. A geographical name that does not constitute an indication of source or denomination
of origin may serve as a characteristic element of a product or service mark, provided that it is notinducing to a false source.
Article 182. The use of the geographical indication is restricted to those producers and service
providers who are established in that locality, and it is also demanded, concerning denominations of
origin, that the quality requirements be satisfied.
Sole Paragraph. The INPI shall establish the conditions for registration of geographical indications.IP/N/1/BRA/I/1
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TITLE V
CRIMES AGAINST INDUSTRIAL PROPERTY
CHAPTER I
CRIMES AGAINST PATENTS
Article 183. A crime against an invention or utility model patent is perpetrated by anyone who:
I – manufactures a product that is the object of an invention or utility model patent, without
authorization from the titleholder; or
II – uses a means or process that is the object of an invention patent, without authorization from
the titleholder.
Penalty – imprisonment, from 3 (three) months to 1 (one) year, or a fine.
Article 184. A crime against an invention or utility model patent is perpetrated by anyone who:
I – exports, sells, displays or offers for sale, has in stock, conceals or receives, with a view to use
for economic purposes, a product manufactured in violation of an invention or utility model patent, orobtained by a patented means or process; or
II – imports a product that is the object of an invention or utility model patent, or obtained by a
means or process patented in this country, for the purposes set forth in the preceding Item, and that
has not been placed on the foreign market directly by the patentholder or with his consent.
Penalty – imprisonment, from 1 (one) to 3 (three) months, or a fine.
Article 185. Supplying a component of a patented product, or material or equipment to execute a
patented process, provided that the final application of the component, material or equipment leadsnecessarily to the exploitation of the object of the patent.
Penalty – imprisonment, from 1 (one) to 3 (three) months, or a fine.
Article 186. The crimes in this Chapter are determined to have been committed even when the
violation does not affect all the claims of the patent or is restricted to the utilization of meansequivalent to the object of the patent.
CHAPTER II
CRIMES AGAINST INDUSTRIAL DESIGNS
Article 187. Manufacturing, without authorization from the titleholder, a product that incorporates a
registered industrial design, or a substantial imitation that may induce to error or confusion.
Penalty – imprisonment, from 3 (three) months to 1 (one) year, or a fine.
Article 188. A crime against industrial design registration is perpetrated by anyone who:
I – exports, sells, displays or offers for sale, has in stock, conceals or receives, with a view to use
for economic purposes, an object that illegally  incorporates a registered industrial design, or a
substantial imitation that may induce to error or  confusion; or
II – imports a product that incorporates an industrial design registered in this country, or a
substantial imitation that may induce to error or confusion, for the purposes set forth in the precedingItem, and that has not been placed on the foreign market directly by the titleholder or with his consent.
Penalty – imprisonment, from 1 (one) to 3 (three) months, or a fine.
CHAPTER III
CRIMES AGAINST MARKS
Article 189. A crime against mark registration is perpetrated by anyone who:
I – reproduces a registered mark, in whole or in part, without the authorization from the titleholder,
or imitates it in a way that may induce to confusion; or
II – alters the registered mark of another person already affixed on a product placed on the market.IP/N/1/BRA/I/1
Page 29
Penalty – imprisonment, from 3 (three) months to 1 (one) year, or a fine.
Article 190. A crime against mark registration is perpetrated by anyone who imports, exports, sells,
offers or displays for sale, conceals or has in stock:
I – a product bearing a mark illegally reproduced or imitated, in whole or in part, of another person;
or
II – a product of his own industry or commerce, contained in a vessel, container or package that
contains the legitimate mark of another person.
Penalty – imprisonment, from 1 (one) to 3 (three) months, or a fine.
CHAPTER IV
CRIMES COMMITTED BY MEANS OF MARK, TITLES OF ESTABLISHMENTS AND
ADVERTISING SIGNS
Article 191. Reproducing or imitating, in whole or in part and in a way that may induce to error or
confusion, coats of arms, escutcheons, or national, foreign or international official badges, without the
necessary authorization, in a mark, title of establishment, trade name, insignia or advertising sign, orusing such reproductions or imitations for economic purposes.
Penalty – imprisonment, from 1 (one) to 3 (three) months, or a fine.Sole Paragraph. Anyone who sells or displays or offers for sale products bearing such marks shall
incur the same penalty.
CHAPTER V
CRIMES AGAINST GEOGRAPHICAL INDICATIONS AND OTHER INDICATIONS
Article 192. Manufacturing, importing, exporting, selling, displaying or offering for sale, or having in
stock a product that bears a false geographical indication.
Penalty – imprisonment, from 1 (one) to 3 (three) months, or a fine.
Article 193. Using, on a product, container, wrapping, ribbon, label, invoice, circular, poster, or any
other means of divulgation or advertising, modifiers such as "type", "species", "genus", "system","similar", "substitute", "identical", or equivalent terms, that do not safeguard the true source of theproduct.
Penalty – imprisonment, from 1 (one) to 3 (three) months, or a fine.
Article 194. Using a mark, trade name, title of establishment, insignia, advertising phrase or sign,
or any other form that indicates other than the real source, or selling or displaying for sale a product
bearing such marks.
Penalty – imprisonment, from 1 (one) to 3 (three) months, or a fine.
CHAPTER VI
CRIMES OF UNFAIR COMPETITION
Article 195. A crime of unfair competition is perpetrated by anyone who:
I – publishes, by any means, false statements, to the detriment of a competitor, for the purpose of
obtaining some advantage;
II – provides or divulges false information about  the competitor in order to obtain an advantage;III – employs fraudulent means to divert the customers of another person to his or another party’s
advantage;
IV – uses another person’s advertising phrase or sign, or imitates it, in order to create confusion
among the products or establishments;
V – uses, improperly, another person’s trade name, title of establishment, or insignia, or sells,
displays, offers for sale, or has in stock a product bearing these references;IP/N/1/BRA/I/1
Page 30
VI – substitutes his own name or firm name on another person’s product in place of that person’s
name or firm name, without his consent;
VII – attributes to himself, for advertising purposes, a reward or distinction that he has not
received;
VIII – sells, displays or offers for sale, in anot her person’s container or wrapper, an adulterated or
counterfeited product, or uses that container or wrapper to negotiate a product of the same type,although not adulterated or counterfeited, provided the act does not constitute a more serious crime;
IX – gives or promises money or some other benefit to an employee of a competitor so that said
employee, by neglecting his job duties, provides him an advantage;
X – receives money or some other benefit, or accepts a promise of payment or reward, to provide
an advantage to the employer’s competitor, by neglecting his duties as an employee;
XI – divulges, exploits, or utilizes, without authorization, confidential knowledge, information or
data that could be used in industry, commerce or rendering of services, other than that which is ofpublic knowledge or that would be evident to a technician versed in the subject, to which he gained
access by means of a contractual or employment relationship, even after the termination of the
contract;
XII – divulges, exploits or utilizes, without authorization, the kind of knowledge or information to
which the previous Item refers, when obtained by illicit means or when access was gained throughfraud; or
XIII – sells, displays or offers for sale a product declaring that it is object of a patent that has been
filed or granted, or of an industrial design that has been registered, when it has not, or mentioning it in
an advertisement or a commercial paper as being filed or patented, or registered, when it has not;
XIV – divulges, exploits, or utilizes, without authorization, results of tests or other undisclosed data
whose preparation involves considerable effort and that were submitted to government agencies as acondition for obtaining approval to commercialize products.
Penalty – imprisonment, for 3 (three) months to 1 (one) year, or a fine.
Paragraph 1. The hypotheses to which Items XI and XII of this Article refer include the employer,
partner or officer of the company, who commits the offenses characterized in those provisions.
Paragraph 2. The provision in Item XIV does not apply to the disclosure by a government agency
empowered to authorize the commercialization of a product, when necessary to protect the public.
CHAPTER VII
GENERAL PROVISIONS
Article 196. The penalties of imprisonment for the crimes set forth in Chapters I, II and III of this
Title shall be increased by one-third to one-half if:
I – the offending party is, or was, the representative, mandatary, agent, partner or employee of the
patentholder or titleholder of the registration or of his licensee; or
II – the mark that has been altered, reproduced or imitated is famous, well known, or is a
certification or collective mark.
Article 197. The fines stipulated in this Title shall be set at a minimum of 10 (ten) and a maximum
of 360 (three hundred and sixty) daily-fines, pursuant to the provisions of the Criminal Code.
Sole Paragraph. The fines may be increased or reduced, by as much as 10 (ten) times, in view of
the personal situation of the agent and the magnitude of the advantage obtained, regardless of therule established in the preceding Article.
Article 198. Products bearing counterfeited, altered or imitated marks, or that show a false
indication of source may be seized by customs authorities, ex officio  or at the request of the interested
party, during verification procedures.
Article 199. In the crimes set forth in this Title, legal action shall be taken only on the basis of a
complaint, except for the crime in Article 191 in which the criminal action shall be public.IP/N/1/BRA/I/1
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Article 200. Criminal action and the preliminary proceedings of search and seizure, in crimes
against industrial property, shall be governed by the Criminal Procedure Code, with the modificationsset forth in the Articles of this Chapter.
Article 201. In search and seizure proceedings, in a crime against patent which object is the
invention of a process, the officer of the court shall be accompanied by an expert who shall make apreliminary verification of the existence of the illicit, and the judge may order the seizure of theproducts obtained by the counterfeiter by employing the patented process.
Article 202. In addition to the preliminary proceedings of search and seizure, the interested party
may request:
I – seizure of the counterfeited, altered or imitated  mark at the place where it is prepared or
wherever it is found, before it is used for criminal purposes; or
II – destruction of the counterfeited mark on the packets or products that contains it, before they
are distributed, even if this implies the destruction of the packaging or of the products themselves.
Article 203. When dealing with industrial or commercial establishments lawfully organized and that
are operating publicly, the preliminary proceedings shall be limited to the inspection and seizure of the
products, when so ordered by the judge, and their activity lawfully engaged in cannot be stopped.
Article 204. Once the search and seizure proceedings have taken place, any party who has
requested such proceedings in bad faith, in a spirit of rivalry, on a mere whim, or as a flagrant mistakeshall be liable for damages.
Article 205. An allegation of nullity of the patent or of the registration on which the proceedings are
based may constitute a material for defense in criminal proceedings. The acquittal of the defendant
shall not, however, cause the nullity of the patent or registration, which may only be sought throughthe competent action.
Article 206. In the event that information disclosed in court, in defense of the interests of either of
the parties, is characterized as confidential, whether industrial or trade secret, the judge shall order
that the proceedings be held in camera , and the other party shall be prohibited from using such
information for other purposes.
Article 207. Independently of the criminal action, the aggrieved party may bring any civil suits he
considers as appropriate pursuant to the Civil Procedure Code.
Article 208. The indemnification shall be determined by the benefits the aggrieved party would
have made if the violation had not occurred.
Article 209. There shall be reserved for the aggrieved party the right to recover damages as
compensation for losses caused by acts that violate industrial property rights and acts of unfaircompetition not set forth in this Law, but that tend to prejudice another person’s reputation orbusiness, create confusion among commercial or industrial establishments or service providers, oramong the products and services placed on the market.
Paragraph 1. The judge may, during the course of the proceedings itself and in order to avoid
damage that is irreparable or difficult to repair, provisionally order the suspension of the violation, or of
the act that gives rise to it, prior to summons for the defendant, and in case he considers it necessary,order the posting of a cash bond or a fidejussory guarantee.
Paragraph 2. In cases of reproduction or flagrant imitation of a registered mark, the judge may
order the seizure of all merchandise, products, objects, packages, labels and anything else thatcontains the counterfeited or imitated mark.
Article 210. Losses of profits shall be determined using the most favorable criterion to the
aggrieved party, among the following:
I – the benefits that the aggrieved party would have made if the violation had not occurred;II – the benefits made by the perpetrator of the violation of the right; orIII – the remuneration that the perpetrator of the violation would have paid to the titleholder of the
violated right throughout the granting of a license that would have allowed him to lawfully exploit the
property.IP/N/1/BRA/I/1
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TITLE VI
TRANSFER OF TECHNOLOGY AND FRANCHISING
Article 211. The INPI shall register the contracts involving transfer of technology, franchising and
similar contracts in order that they may become effective with regard to third parties.
Sole Paragraph. The decision related to the applications for registration of contracts referred to in
this Article shall be issued within a period of 30 (thirty) days of the date of the application for
registration.
TITLE VII
GENERAL PROVISIONS
CHAPTER I
APPEALS
Article 212. Unless expressly established otherwise, the decisions provided for in this Law are
subject to appeal, which shall be presented within a period of 60 (sixty) days.
Paragraph 1. Appeals shall be received in full suspensive and devolutive effects, and, where
applicable, all the provisions pertinent to the examination at the first instance level shall apply.
Paragraph 2. There shall be no appeal of the decision ordering definitive dismissal of a patent or of
a registration application, and of the decision approving the application for a patent, a certificate ofaddition, or a registration of a mark.
Paragraph 3. The appeals shall be decided by the President of the INPI, whereupon the
administrative jurisdiction shall be ended.
Article 213. Interested parties shall be notified so that, within a period of 60 (sixty) days, they
present arguments against the appeal.
Article 214. For purposes of supplementing the arguments offered by way of appeal, the INPI may
formulate demands, which must be satisfied within a period of 60 (sixty) days.
Sole Paragraph. After the time limit stipulated in the caput  has elapsed, the appeal shall be
decided.
Article 215. The decision on an appeal is final and unappealable within the administrative sphere.
CHAPTER II
ACTS BY THE PARTIES
Article 216. The acts set forth in this Law shall be taken by the parties or by their duly qualified
attorneys in fact.
Paragraph 1. The original, transcript, or certified photocopy of the instrument of power of attorney
must be in the Portuguese language, but it shall not require consular authentication and notarization
of signature.
Paragraph 2. The power of attorney must be presented within up 60 (sixty) days from the date of
the first act by the party in the proceedings, independent from notification or demand, under penalty ofdismissal, being definitive the dismissal of a patent application, an application for registration of anindustrial design and an application for registration of a mark.
Article 217. The person domiciled abroad must appoint and retain an attorney in fact who is duly
qualified and domiciled in this country, and with powers to represent that person in administrative andjudicial proceedings, including receipt of summons.
Article 218. A petition shall not be considered when:
I – it is presented outside the legal period; orIP/N/1/BRA/I/1
Page 33
II – it is not accompanied by proof that the appropriate fee has been paid for the amount required
on the date it was filed.
Article 219. Neither a petition, opposition or appeal shall be consider, if:
I – it is presented outside the period stipulated in this Law;
II – it does not contain legal grounds; orIII – it is not accompanied by proof of payment of the corresponding fee.
Article 220. The INPI shall, whenever possible, make use of the acts by the parties, by formulating
the appropriate demands.
CHAPTER III
TIME PERIODS
Article 221. The time periods established in this Law are continuous and the right to conduct the
action is automatically extinguished after it has elapsed, unless the party proves that it has not actedowing to just cause.
Paragraph 1. Just cause is considered to be an unforeseen event, beyond the control of a party
that prevents it from taking the action.
Paragraph 2. Once just cause has been recognized, the party shall take the action within the time
limit granted to it by the INPI.
Article 222. The calculation of the time periods excludes the first day but includes the day of the
expiration.
Article 223. The time periods begin to run only after the first working day after notification which
shall be done by means of publication in the INPI official gazette.
Article 224. When no specific stipulation is made in this Law, the time period for taking an action
shall be 60 (sixty) days.
CHAPTER IV
STATUTE OF LIMITATIONS
Article 225. The statute of limitations on an action to remedy damages caused to an industrial
property right is 5 (five) years.
CHAPTER V
ACTS BY THE INPI
Article 226. The acts by the INPI in administrative proceedings regarding industrial property
become  effective only upon publication in the appropriate official gazette, with the following
exceptions:
I – those that does not expressly depend on a notification or publication requirement under the
provisions of this Law;
II – administrative decisions, when notification is made by mail or information given to the
interested party in the proceedings; and
III – internal opinions and instructions of which parties do not need to be informed.IP/N/1/BRA/I/1
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CHAPTER VI
CLASSIFICATIONS
Article 227. Classifications with regard to the subjects of Titles I, II and III of this Law shall be
established by the INPI whenever they have not been established in an international treaty oragreement in force in Brazil.
CHAPTER VII
FEES
Article 228. Fees shall be charged for the services set forth in this Law, and the amounts of such
fees and the form of collection shall be established by an act of the head of the public federaladministration  agency to which the INPI is attached.
TITLE VIII
TRANSITORY AND FINAL PROVISIONS
Article 229. The provisions of this Law shall apply to pending applications, except as regards
patentability of substances, materials or products obtained by chemical means or processes, andalimentary or chemical-pharmaceutical substances, materials, mixtures or products, and medicationsof any kind, as well as the respective processes for obtaining or modifying them, which shall only beprivileged under the conditions established in Articles 230 and 231.
Article 230. An application for a patent, related to substances, materials or products obtained by
chemical means or processes, and alimentary or chemical-pharmaceutical substances, materials,mixtures or products, and medications of any kind, as well as the respective processes for obtainingor modifying them, may be filed by a party who enjoys protection guaranteed by a treaty or conventionin force in Brazil, in which case it is assured the date of the first patent application filed abroad,provided that its object has not been introduced on any market by direct initiative of the titleholder or
by a third party with his consent, and that no serious and effective preparations to exploit the object of
the application or of the patent have been made, in this country, by third parties.
Paragraph 1. The filing must occur within a period of 1 (one) year from the date of publication of
this Law, and must indicate the date of the first filing abroad.
Paragraph 2. A patent application filed on the basis of this Article shall automatically be published,
and any interested party may submit comments, within a period of 90 (ninety) days, as to whether it
satisfies the provisions in the caput  of this Article.
Paragraph 3. When Articles 10 and 18 of this Law have been observed, and once the provisions
established in this Article have been satisfied and the granting of the patent in the country where thefirst application was filed has been proven, the patent shall be granted in Brazil, just as it was grantedin its country of origin.
Paragraph 4. The patent granted on the basis of this Article is assured the period of protection
remaining in the country where the first application was filed, calculated from the date of filing in Braziland limited to the period established in Article 40, not applying the provisions of its Sole Paragraph.
Paragraph 5. An applicant who has filed a patent application that is still pending, related to
substances, materials or products obtained by chemical means or processes, and alimentary orchemical-pharmaceutical substances, materials, mixtures, or products, and medications of any kind,
as well as the respective processes for obtaining or modifying them, may submit a new application
within the time limit and under the conditions established in this Article, attaching proof of havingabandoned the pending application.
Paragraph 6. The provisions of this Law apply, where applicable, to the application filed and the
patent granted on the basis of this Article
Article 231. An application for a patent related to the subject matter dealt with in the preceding
Article may be filed by a national or a person domiciled in this country, in which case it is assured the
date of disclosure of the invention, provided that its object has not been introduced on any market byIP/N/1/BRA/I/1
Page 35
direct initiative of the titleholder or by a third party with his consent, and that no serious and effective
preparations to exploit the object of the patent have been made, in this country, by third parties.
Paragraph 1. The filing must occur within a period of 1 (one) year from the date of publication of
this Law.
Paragraph 2. The patent application filed on the basis of this Article shall be processed pursuant to
this Law.
Paragraph 3. The patent granted on the basis of this Article is assured the remainder of the 20
(twenty) year protection period calculated from the disclosure date of the invention, beginning on the
filing date in Brazil.
Paragraph 4. An applicant who has filed a patent application that is still pending, related to the
subject matters dealt with in the preceding Article, may submit a new application, within the time limitand under the conditions established in this Article, attaching proof of having abandoned the pendingapplication.
Article 232. The production or use, under the provisions of the previous legislation, of substances,
materials or products obtained by chemical means or processes, and alimentary or chemical-
pharmaceutical substances, materials, mixtures, or products, and medications of any kind, as well asthe respective processes for obtaining or modifying them, even if protected by a product or processpatent in another country, under a treaty or convention in force in Brazil, may continue under thesame conditions as prevailed prior to the approval of this Law.
Paragraph 1. No retroactive or future charge of any amount for any reason shall be permitted with
respect to products produced or processes employed in Brazil pursuant to this Article.
Paragraph 2. Likewise, no charge shall be permitted under the terms of the preceding Paragraph
in the event that, during the period prior to the entry into force of this Law, significant investmentshave been made toward the exploitation of product or process referred to in this Article, even ifprotected by a product or process patent in another country.
Article 233. Applications for registration of advertising phrases and signs and of declarations of
notoriety shall be definitively dismissed, and the registrations and declaration shall remain in force for
the remainder of the term, but cannot be extended.
Article 234. The applicant is assured the guarantee of priority set forth in Article 7 of Law no. 5,772
of December 21, 1971, until the end of the time period in effect.
Article 235. The time period in effect granted under Law no. 5,772 of December 21, 1971, is
assured.
Article 236. The application for an industrial model or design patent, filed while Law no. 5,772 of
December 21, 1971, was in force, shall automatically be designated as application for registration ofindustrial design, and the publication already done shall be considered for all legal effects.
Sole Paragraph. For the adapted applications, the payments shall be taken into consideration for
purposes of calculating the five-year remuneration owed.
Article 237. The provisions of Article 111 shall not apply to the industrial model or design patent
applications that were object of an examination in accordance with Law no. 5,772 of December 21,1971.
Article 238. Appeals filed while Law no. 5,772 of December 21, 1971, was in force shall be decided
as set forth in that Law.
Article 239. The Executive Power is empowered to promote the necessary changes in the INPI to
ensure financial and administrative autonomy to that Autarky, which may:
I – contract technical and administrative personnel by means of public competition;II – establish a salary scale for its employees, subject to approval by the Ministry to which the INPI
is attached;
III – make decisions on the basic structure and internal regulations, which shall be approved by the
Ministry to which the INPI is attached.
Sole Paragraph. Expenditures resulting from application of this Article shall be charged against the
INPI own funds.IP/N/1/BRA/I/1
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Article 240. Article 2 of Law no. 5,648 of December 11, 1970, shall henceforth read as follows:
"Article 2. The principal purpose of the INPI is to enforce, at the national level, rules regulating
industrial property, taking into account its social, economic, legal and technical role, and to offer
comments regarding the advisability of signing, ratifying and terminating conventions, treaties,
accords, and agreements on industrial property."
Article 241. The Judicial Power is hereby authorized to create special courts to settle issues
involving intellectual property.
Article 242. The Executive Power shall submit to the National Congress a bill of law intended to
accomplish, whenever necessary, the harmonization of this Law with the industrial property policy
adopted by the other countries that are members of MERCOSUL.
Article 243. This Law enters into force on the date of its publication as regards the subject matters
regulated in Articles 230, 231, 232, and 239, and 1 (one) year after publication as regards the otherArticles.
Article 244. The Law no. 5,772 of December 21, 1971, Law no. 6,348 of July 7, 1976, Articles 187
to 196 of Decree-Law no. 2,848 of December 7, 1940, Articles 169 to 189 of Decree-Law no. 7,903 of
August 27, 1945, and any other provisions contrary to this Law are to be repealed.
Brasília, May 14, 1996; 175
th of the Independence and 108th of the Republic.
FERNANDO HENRIQUE CARDOSO
Nelson A. Jobim
Sebastião do Rego Barros Neto
Pedro Malan
Francisco DornellesJosé Israel Vargas
NOTICE: The English version of this law is provided only as a means of
reference. It is noted that the Portuguese version solely constitutes the official one,for any use the reader may intend.
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