RESTRICTEDWORLD TRADE
ORGANIZATIONIP/Q4/SVK/1
5  May 1999
(99-1808)
Council for Trade-Related Aspects
of Intellectual Property RightsOriginal:  English
REVIEW OF LEGISLATION ON ENFORCEMENT
THE SLOVAK REPUBLIC1
The present document reproduces the introductory statement made by the delegation of the
Slovak Republic, the questions put to it and the responses given in the review of legislation onenforcement at the Council's meeting of 17-21 November 1997
2.
_______________
I. INTRODUCTORY STATEMENT
I would like to make a few general comments on the legislation concerning enforcement,
which is on the current agenda.
At the outset I wish to stress that Article 65.3 of the TRIPS Agreement is applicable to the
Slovak Republic.  However, the Slovak Republic being in conformity with the broad majority of
respective articles of the TRIPS Agreement, notified its intellectual property legislation which hasbeen duly reviewed, with the exception of copyright legislation.  In addition, responses to theChecklist of Issues on Enforcement have been submitted and are contained in WTO documentIP/N/6/SVK/1.
The Slovak Republic is attaching great importance to the implementation of the TRIPS
Agreement, most of the respective articles are fully or partially implemented into nationallegislation and as is reflected in the answers distributed, further improvements of those elementswhich are still missi ng are under intensive consideration.  This concerns the Copyright Law which
has passed the relevant committees in the Parliament and only final approval is to be made this year.Recodification of the Criminal Law and Code of Civil Procedure is in its final stages, and the
specific legislation on border measures is under consideration.
Let me now come to the substance of today's review focused on enforcement.  The Slovak
Republic submitted details of its legislation on enforcement, which is contained in WTO documentIP/N/6/SVK/1.
In this connection we have received 94 written questions from delegations of the European
Communities and their Member States, the United States and Japan.  Written responses are
                                                     
1 As regards laws and regulations relevant to the area under review and notified by the Slovak Republic
under Article 63.2 of the Agreement, reference is made to documents IP/N/1/SVK/1/Rev.1 (Annex II) and
IP/N/6/SVK/1.
2 The minutes of this meeting have been circulated as document IP/C/M/16.IP/Q4/SVK/1
Page 2
available in the room.  We have made our best effort in reacting properly to the concerns of our
partners.
The questions posed concern a wide area of legal relations.  From our point of view the
most important question represents the court enforcement proceeding regulated by the Code of CivilProcedure, Law No. 99/1963 including amendments, administrative enforcement proceedinggenerally done by the Code of Administrative Procedure, Law No. 71/1967 Coll. including bordermeasures, Customs Law No. 180/1996 Coll. and other specialised law regulations.
Another area of interest is the protection of confidential information covered by several
special Acts, and the relationship between international treaties and domestic law that is generally
regulated by Articles 11 and 125(e) of the Constitution of the Slovak Republic and Law No. 1/1993Coll. on Law Collection.
We do hope that the answers submitted provide sufficient basis for the partners to be able to
assess our current legislative framework in the reviewed area.  We are open to follow-up questions,if any, and we shall appreciate receiving possible questions in written form.
II. REPLIES TO QUESTIONS POSED BY THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES AND
THEIR MEMBER STATES
1. Under the Constitution of the Slovak Republic international conventions which are
ratified and published in the Slovak Republic in accordance with applicable proceduresbecome part of the domestic law of the Slovak Republic and have precedence over same to theextent of any contradiction.  Such ratified and published international conventions maytherefore be said to supplement Slovak domestic law in cases where there is no contradictionbetween the two.  It is the understanding of the European Communities and their MemberStates that the TRIPS Agreement has not yet been officially published in the Slovak Republicin accordance with relevant constitutional requirements.  Please explain.
First of all it is necessary to reply to the part of question 1 regarding precedence of ratified
and published international conventions over Slovak domestic law in case of any contradiction.  Inthis respect it must be stressed that in accordance with Article 11 of the Constitution of the SlovakRepublic only the conventions regulating human rights have direct precedence before law, so that incases where an international convention provides for the rights of the above-mentioned character toa broader extent than the domestic law, and also in cases where there is any direct contradictionbetween any convention and the law, the court can apply directly the international convention.Pursuant to Article 125 (e) of the Constitution of the Slova k Republic other international
conventions also have precedence when the Constitutional Court makes decisions regarding theconformity of generally binding legal regulations with international conventions proclaimed in themanner provided for the promulgation of laws.  If the Constitutional Court makes a decision withrespect to the non-conformity of the law with any international convention, this law, or its relevantpart, ceases to be in force after the period of six months if, in the meantime, it has not beenamended by the Parliament according to the decision of the Constitutional Court.  As a result of theabove, any international convention other than the convention on human rights has precedence overthe domestic law, but this precedence cannot be applied directly, rather only after the above-mentioned process in the Constitutional Court.
The TRIPS Agreement as a part of the Final Act was ratified by the Parliament in
December 1995 and it entered into force as of the day of the approval.  From this date theIP/Q4/SVK/1
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provisions of the TRIPS Agreement were incorporated into the national legislation (e.g. trademark
law).  The TRIPS Agreement is available in the Slovak language to all relevant state administrativebodies and to the business community through various publications.  Official publication of thetranslation of the TRIPS Agreement is expected in the near future, however this is considered as astrictly technical issue.
2. What is the status of the recodification by the Slovak Republic of Law No. 99/1963 on
Civil Procedures (hereinafter referred to as the "Slovak Code of Civil Procedure") and of LawNo. 392/1992 on Criminal Law?  How does the new legislation implement Part III of theTRIPS Agreement?
The recodification of the Code of Civil Procedure of the present Law No. 99/1963
including amendments is in its final stages.  At present the review of the proposed amendment hasbeen concluded by the expert institutions recommended by the European Commission.  Theconclusions of the recommendations have not yet been fully analyzed by the Ministry of Justice asthey are being translated into the Slovak language.  In general it can be said that the Slovak Code ofCivil Procedure, especially after its amendment in 1992, complies with the criteria of Part III of theTRIPS Agreement.  It is necessary to stress that the length of legal proceedings which, followingthe changes of the political system, was too long especially regarding commercial matters, cannot
be essentially influenced by legal measures.  The improvement in this matter is contingent, aboveall, on the consolidation of econom ic and partly political life of th e society.  In terms of time
horizon of the recodification of the Code of Civil Procedure, according to the information from theMinistry of Justice it is expected that the proposal will be submitted in its final phase of thelegislative process in the Parliament during 1998.  Regarding the recodification of the Criminal Lawand Criminal Code the legislative work is in a more advanced stage and the beginning of the finalphase of the legislative process in the Parliament is expected to be completed in the course of thisyear.
In accordance with the Criminal Law, in cases where the court makes a decision about
commitment of a criminal act pursuant to Sections 150 through 151 of the Criminal Law (protectionof industrial property rights, which also concerns copyright and related rights) the punishment offorfeiture of a thing, or in prior stages, seizure of things serving for the perpetration of a criminalact, can be imposed, by means of which Article 46 of the TRIPS Agreement can be applied to acertain extent.
3. Are the enforcement procedures as specified in the TRIPS Agreement available under
the laws of the Slovak Republic so as to permit effective action without unwarranted delays inaccordance with Articles 41.1 and 41.2 of the TRIPS Agreement?  Please explain.
The procedures enforcing industrial property rights are secured and executed by the
Industrial Property Office of the Slovak Republic and by ordinary courts within their givencompetences.  Within the jurisdiction of the Court of Appeals (High Court) is also the examinationof decisions of the Industrial Property Office as the central body of the state administration.
The proceedings before the Office are generally accessible both from the viewpoint of the
procedure, as there are not any special requirements imposed regarding communication with theOffice, as well as the proceedings before the Office.  In proceedings the Office gives priority tomatters concerning disputes of parties in legal proceedings or international applications for
trademarks.  The same applies in case of proceedings before the court where the possibility of not
complying with the time limit or unwarranted delays can be solved by submitting the proposal forIP/Q4/SVK/1
Page 4
the provisional measure, which is ordered by the court according to Section 75, 2 of the Code of
Civil Procedure, within 30 days of the day of submitting the proposal for the provisional measure.The enforcement of rights through the above-mentioned procedures must be in conformity withgood morals or commercial practices.
The prevention of the creation of obstacles to legal trade as well as of the infringement of
rights is the subject of the amendment provided by Sections 3 through 10 of the Law on Protectionof Economic Competition No.188/1994 Coll. in which case the competent body is theAnti-Monopoly Office of the Slovak Republic.
4. Please explain whether and how Slovak law permits relevant judicial authorities to
compel the production of evidence by an opposing party, subject to conditions which ensurethe protection of confidential information in appropriate cases, in accordance with Article 43.1of the TRIPS Agreement?
If this is not the case, does the Government of the Slovak Republic intend to include
such a provision in the recodification of the Slovak Code of Civil Procedure?
The court can compel everybody, including a party to the proceedings, to produce a
document or an object as evidence (Section 129, 2, Code of Civil Procedure).  The court may alsoorder the examination of a thing in the place where it is located (Section 130).  The court may alsohear the parties to the proceedings as witnesses (Section 131).  Disobedience of the court’s ordercan be sanctioned by imposing a penalty several times in order.
According to Sections 35, 37 and 38 of the Law on Civil Procedure an administrative
authority  also has similar jurisdiction.
The examination of submitted evidence is at the court’s discretion.  In cases where the
plaintiff partially lacks evidence the court can also take into consideration and, for the plaintiff’sbenefit, examine circumstantial evidence and, in extreme cases, also deal with the question of thetrustworthiness of the party to the proceedings and decide for the plaintiff’s benefit but only if theopposing party does not rebut evidence produced by the plaintiff.  In specific cases the law dealswith the supposed lack of evidence of the injured party by means of rebuttable legal presumptionsas, for example, provided by the patent law in Section 13, 2 of Law No. 527/1990 Coll. as follows:"If the patent is granted to a process the rights to this patent are extended to the products obtaineddirectly by a patented process, when identical products are considered to be obtained by theprocedure of protection if it is not proved otherwise".  The court then can require any person tosubmit documents, or objects, or it can request this person to testify regarding the facts proposed bya party to the proceedings if this party is not capable of producing evidence.
The protection of official (State) and professional secrets is provided by Law No. 100/1996
Coll.  According to Section 3, 1, a professional secret is information or a thing connected with anactivity of a State body, community or other legal entity indicated in the list of facts presenting thesubject of a professional secret of a central body or community which, with respect to itsimportance, must be protected against disclosure, misuse, damage, destruction, loss or stealing.
Every State body makes a list of official secrets whose release and deposit is published in
the Collection of Laws.  In the case of the Industrial Property Office the subject-matter of its
official secrets are considered to be an invention, utility model, industrial design, and topography of
semiconductor products when an applicant or right holder requests secrecy.IP/Q4/SVK/1
Page 5
In such cases the treatment of the documentary material and access to it are the subject of a
special protection regime in accordance with the law.  The same procedure is applied in a legalproceeding.
A further category is trade secrets, and as such production secrets should be considered.
With regard to the above-mentioned the protection is provided by the Commercial CodeNo. 513/1991 Coll.  Section 17 of the Commercial Code defines trade secrets as follows:
"The subject-matter of the rights which belong to an enterprise are also trade secrets.  Trade
secrets are made up of all facts of trade, production, or technical nature connected with anenterprise, and which have real or at least potential material or non-material value, andwhich are not generally accessible in trade circles, and should be officially secret if anentrepreneur so wishes and he himself in an adequate manner secures their secrecy".
According to Section 20:"The entrepreneur is entitled to legal protection against breach or jeopardy of the
right to trade secret as against unfair competition."
The breach of trade secret is defined in Section 51 as follows:"The breach of trade secret is an action by which a person unlawfully states, reveals
to another person, or for himself or for another person makes use of a trade secret(Section 17), which can be used in competition and about which he obtainsknowledge in the following manner:
"(a) The secret was confided to him or it became accessible in some other
manner (e.g. from technical documents, instructions, drawings, models ordesigns) based on an employee relationship with his competitor, or on thebasis of some other relationship with the competitor, or in the execution ofhis function to which he was called by the court or some other body,
"(b) by his own action or another person’s action which is contrary to law."From the quoted part of Section 51, a) and b), the obligations of third parties in relation to a
trade secret are evident, albeit very generally.
For the purpose of the proceedings before the Anti-Monopoly Office the obligations of the
third persons are defined in Sections 15 and 16 of the Law on Protection of Economic CompetitionNo. 188/1994.  In Section 15 it is provided:  "Entrepreneurs are obliged to submit to the Office therequired documents and information, to comply with examination of these documents andinformation and to enable employees of the Office to enter all objects, premises and means oftransport of entrepreneurs".
In Section 16 it is provided:(1) "The documents and information obtained by the Office from entrepreneurs of the
bodies of the State admini stration and communities can be used only for the
purposes for which they were requested."IP/Q4/SVK/1
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(2) "The employees of the Office as well as the persons commissioned to fulfil the tasks
which belong to the competence of the Office are obliged to adhere to secrecyregarding the facts making up trade secrets, about which they obtained knowledgewhen fulfilling the above-mentioned tasks."
The last category represents confidential information, i.e. the facts which do not meet the
criteria of an official, professional or trade secret but there is a rational and socially acceptablereason for their confidential treatment.  In general, this category is not regulated by a specific law.However, some norms of procedural character regulate the obligations of the third parties(especially of the State authorities) in relation to confidential information.
The above-mentioned norms are Sections 44 and 124 of the Code of Civil Procedure,
Section 23 of the Law on Civil Procedure No.71/1967 Coll., Section 4 of the Decree of theMinistry of Justice - Regulations of Procedure for District and Regional Courts No.66/1992 Coll.
5. Please explain whether and how Slovak law permits relevant judicial authorities to
make preliminary and final determinations on the basis of information presented to them incases where a party to a proceeding voluntarily and without good reason refuses access to orotherwise does not provide necessary information or significantly impedes a procedure relatingto an enforcement action in accordance with Article 43.2 of the TRIPS Agreement?
If this is not the case, does the Government of the Slovak Republic intend to include
such a provision in the recodification of the Slovak Code of Civil Procedure?
This question was partly answered within the answer to question 3.  On the basis of the
proposal of a party the court can order preliminary measures in cases where statements of a partyregarding presented information appear reliable while it is not necessary to hear an opposing party.In principle, the court renders an opportunity to an opposing party to state its own opinion regardingthe proposal for a preliminary measure whose force is time limited, or limited by a final decision.A party to a proceeding is obliged to appear before the court in person or through a representativeand he can be forced to do so by means of fines or be brought before the court by the police.  Thisquestion was also partly answered in the answer to question 4.
With regard to the TRIPS Agreement the provision of Section 76, 1 of the Code of Civil
Procedure is important according to which the court can impose an obligation on a party by meansof a preliminary measure not to manage, administer or handle things or rights, to do something, toabstain from something, or to countenance something, to deposit a monetary sum or deposit a thingwith the court, etc.
6. Please explain whether and how Slovak law permits relevant judicial authorities to
order the disposal outside the channels of commerce, without compensation of any sort, of:
(a) goods that they have found to be infringing;  and/or(b) materials and implements the predominant use of which has been in the
creation of the infringing goods,
in accordance with Article 46 of the TRIPS Agreement?IP/Q4/SVK/1
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Please also explain whether and how Slovak law permits relevant judicial authorities to
order the destruction of infringing goods in accordance with Article 46 of the TRIPSAgreement?  If this is not the case, does the Government of the Slovak Republic intend toinclude such a provision in the recodification of the Slovak Code of Civil Procedure?
In accordance with Section 26, 1 of the Law on Trademarks No. 55/1997 Coll. the
trademark holder can request anyone to refrain from the use of his trademark or a sign confusinglysimilar to his trademark for identical or similar goods or services and may request that thus markeditems are withdrawn from the market.
Similar rights are granted mutatis mutandis  to holders of other subjects of industrial
property.  The court can forbid the use of an identical or confusingly similar mark for identical orsimilar goods or services (this limitation does not concern well-known trademarks), and order thedisposal of such goods outside the channels of commerce.  The provisions permitting orders for thedestruction of infringing goods are currently under consideration with respect to their compatibilitywith the Constitution.  At present such procedure is possible only in cases where it is establishedthat a criminal act was committed then, as has been mentioned above, a body active in criminalproceedings can make a decision regarding seizure of a thing which serves to commit a criminal actand the court can order, among other things, forfeiture of a thing.  The specific amendment in thisrespect is expected in the recodification of the Customs Law, especially in relation to protectionfrom infringing goods at the border.
[Follow-up question from the EC]
Please indicate when the recodification of the Customs Law will take place.Preparation of the special regulation on border measures relating to the protection of
intellectual property rights is expected to begin in the year 1998 with the aim to finish the legislativeprocess and to adopt this law in the following year.
7. Please explain whether Slovak law permits relevant judicial authorities to order an
infringer to inform the right holder of the identity of third persons involved in the productionand distribution of infringing goods or services and of their channels of distribution inaccordance with Article 47 of the TRIPS Agreement?  If this is not the case, will this type ofprovision be included in the recodification of the Slovak Code of Civil Procedure?
The right to information in accordance with Article 47 of the TRIPS Agreement is provided
to the right holder by Section 25 (2) and (3) of the Law on Trademarks No. 55/1997, according towhich the right holder can request the above information through the court.
[Follow-up questions from the EC]
Could the Government of the Slovak Republic please clarify whether the competence of
relevant judicial authorities to order an infringer to inform the right holder of the identity ofthird persons involved in the production and distribution of infringing goods or services and oftheir channels of distribution is limited to holders of a mark.  If so, does the Government ofthe Slovak Republic intend to extend this authority to other areas of intellectual property?
The right to information according to Article 47 of the TRIPS Agreement regulates the
Trademark Law No. 55/1997 Coll. only.  But considering the planned total recodification of theIP/Q4/SVK/1
Page 8
legislation in the field of the protection of industrial property rights (in the frame of approximation
of the law), this authority will also be extended to other areas of intellectual property rights.
Could the Slovak Republic please explain in more detail what steps it is going to take to
bring its law into compliance with Articles 52 to 57 and 59 of the TRIPS Agreement?
See the reply to the follow-up question to question 6.
8. Does Slovak law provide for a procedure whereby a right holder may apply for the
suspension by customs authorities of the release into free circulation of goods suspected ofbeing counterfeit trademark or pirated copyright goods in accordance with Article 51 of theTRIPS Agreement?  If so, do such procedures comply with the provisions of Articles 52 to 57and 59 of the TRIPS Agreement?  Please explain.
The regulations regarding trademarks and customs at present do not entitle the right holder
to officially request intervention by the customs authorities in the matters regarding imitated orcounterfeit products in relation to trademarks and copyright.  According to Section 60 of the Lawon Customs No. 180/1996 Coll. the customs authorities are obliged to take into considerationprohibitions and restrictions with regard to the intellectual property protection in the customsproceedings.  The right holder can initiate the suspension of goods at the border and in case of hisright the customs authorities are obliged to respect this.  This amendment, though, is not sufficientas the right holder does not become a party to a proceeding through this action and has noprocedural rights which he would have if he was a party to a proceeding.  On the other hand afinancial guarantee cannot be required in cases where the suspension of goods would be establishedas unjustified and would result in damage or material loss.  The present amendment does notcomply with the provisions of Articles 52 through 57 and 59 of the TRIPS Agreement.  Specificnew legislation for the border measures addressing among other things the provisions of Articles 52through 57 and 59 of the TRIPS Agreement is under consideration.
9. Does Slovak law require competent authorities to act upon their own initiative and to
suspend the release of goods in accordance with Article 58 of the TRIPS Agreement?  If so,does Slovak law also comply with the provisions of Article 58, paragraphs (a) to (c) of theTRIPS Agreement?  Please explain.
This question was partly answered in the answer to question 8 which means that if the
customs authorities obtain knowledge in any manner that goods cleared through customs infringe anintellectual property right they are obliged to respect this fact and act accordingly.  It usually resultsin the release into circulation of goods being suspended.
10. With regard to cases that involve the infringement of intellectual property, could the
Government of the Slovak Republic provide data on the number of:
- law suits that have been filed including their respective outcome and the
average length from the filing of a complaint until the final judgement;
- injunctions that have been issued (as defined in Article 44 of the TRIPS
Agreement) and explain how such injunctions are being enforced;IP/Q4/SVK/1
Page 9
- provisional measures (as defined in Article 50 of the TRIPS Agreement) that
have been granted and the average length to obtain such measures (from therequest);
- suspensions at the border of counterfeit trademark/pirated copyright goods or
in relation to goods where other intellectual property rights are infringed;
- criminal cases including the sentences that have been applied;  whether they
have been executed;  and please also explain what kind of infringement of anintellectual property right would be regarded as a violation of criminal law;
- seizures and/or destruction of counterfeit trademark and pirated copyright
goods.
Furthermore, could the Government of the Slovak Republic explain and give practical
examples of:
- how the compensation for damages of the infringement of intellectual property
rights is calculated (Article 45.1 of the TRIPS Agreement);
- what would be regarded as "expenses of the right holder" which have to be
reimbursed pursuant to Article 45.2, first half of the first sentence, of theTRIPS Agreement and how they would be calculated;
- whether attorney’s fees can be reimbursed and how such fees would be
calculated;
- whether Article 45.2, second sentence, of the TRIPS Agreement has been
implemented in the Slovak Republic and how such "damages" would becalculated?
The required statistical data is not available directly in the Office.  The Office has asked the
Ministry of Justice and the Central Customs Administration for the provision of the above-mentioned information.
In order to answer the question regarding the criminal aspects of the intellectual property
protection it would be best to quote the concrete provisions of the Code of Criminal Procedure,Sections 150 through 152.
Section 150 - Infringement of the rights to a trademark, trade name and protected
appellation of origin
(1) The person who has put on the market products or provided services marked with a
mark identical to a trademark, the exclusive right for which belongs to another
person, or a sign confusingly similar to this trademark, is punished by imprisonment
for the period of one year, or by a monetary fine, or forfeiture of a thing.
(2) Equal punishment is imposed on a person who in order to achieve economic benefit:
(a) unlawfully uses a trade name or whatever sign confusingly similar with this
name, orIP/Q4/SVK/1
Page 10
(b) puts into circulation products unlawfully marked with an appellation of
origin to which the exclusive right belongs to another person, or with anappellation of origin confusingly similar.
Section 151 - Infringement of industrial rights
The person who unlawfully infringes the right to a protected invention, industrial design,
utility model or topography of semiconductor products is punished by imprisonment for the
period of up to three years, or a monetary fine.
Section 152 - Infringement of copyright
(1) The person who unlawfully disposes with a work which is the subject-matter of the
protection according to the copyright, or with a performance of a performing artist,with a sound or visual recording, with a broadcast or television programme whichare the subject-matter of the right similar to the copyright, in the manner whichbelongs to the author, performing artist, maker of a sound or visual recording, abroadcast or television organisation or other holder of this right, or the person whoinfringes the above-mentioned rights in some other manner, is punished byimprisonment for the period of up to two years, or by a monetary fine, or byforfeiture of a thing.
(2) The perpetrator is punished by imprisonment for a period from six months up to
five years, or by a monetary fine, or forfeiture of a thing, if:
(a) this person gains by the action stated in paragraph 1 considerable benefit, or(b) this person commits an act of a large scope.
When considering unlawful actions in terms of their intensity and thus establishing a
criminal act it should be stressed that it is a matter for the judge’s discretion and before him that ofthe prosecutor.  As for Section 150 the condition is th e release of goods into free circulation, or the
release of a service with a direct unlawful use of a protected sign.  Experience which could begeneralised, above all by the judiciary, has not yet been gained in the Slovak Republic.
Second part
In any case the determination of the amount of damage is a matter for the plaintiff.  In case
the amount of damage is adequately and reliably justified and proved the court has the grounds to
adjudicate on the claimed damage.  In cases where the right holder suffers material loss which does
not have the character of damage from the legal point of view, as it was not caused by an illegalaction, or in case of the occurrence of non-material loss, the court can assign the right to adequate
satisfaction to an injured party which can also be monetary performance.  In such case the amount of
monetary equivalent representing the satisfaction is determined in the judge’s discretion which is
obviously based on the submitted request and, although it is not an objectively established fact but the
fact modelled on the basis of a discretion, it must have a rational basis.
We consider the above-mentioned facts answer the question as to what would be regarded as
expenses of the right holder which have to be reimbursed pursuant to Article 45.1.IP/Q4/SVK/1
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A party to a proceeding who is successful, or partly successful, can be adjudicated the right
to compensation for costs of the proceedings to the extent of his success.  These include apart fromlegal fees, attorney’s fees and also other fees which were provable and purposefully expended inrelation to the enforcement of the right in court.  The reimbursement of attorney’s fees isobjectively calculated according to the tariffs given by the Decree of the Ministry of Justicedetermining the remuneration of attorneys for individual acts according to their kind, amount ofclaim and number.
As for the implementation of Article 45.2, second sentence of the TRIPS Agreement,
according to our opinion it is included in Section 26 (3) of the Law on Trademarks No. 55/1997Coll., which adjudicates the right to compensation for damage, or the right to adequate satisfaction,which can also be monetary performance regardless of whether the infringer infringed the rights ofthe right holder and caused, knowingly or unknowingly, damage or other loss.
Criminal Procedures
According to  The final number of condemned persons
1994 1995 1996
§ 150 (2) 0 0 0
§ 151 1 1 2
§ 152 22 28 25
Statistics on Civil Actions
Case YearThe final
number of
accomplished
casesThe average
duration of
the action /in
months
Infringement of copyright 1994
1995199643
29107.9
9.8
10.2
Other copyright cases 1994
19951996140
93288.0
8.1
12.3
The rights of inventors 1994
199519967
4917.1
21.019.7
The rights on rationalizationproposals and industrial designs1994
1995199641
381519.3
21.121.9IP/Q4/SVK/1
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III. REPLIES TO QUESTIONS POSED BY JAPAN
1. Please indicate the "competent authorities" stipulated in Article 51 of the TRIPS
Agreement.
The " competent authorities ", stipulated in Article 51 of the TRIPS Agreement, are a
particular Customs Office which is subordinate to the Customs Directorate of the Slovak Republicin Bratislava.
2. Please explain whether "proceedings leading to a decision on the merits of the case"
stipulated in Article 55 of the TRIPS Agreement, are judicial or administrative.
The proceeding specified in Article 55 of the TRIPS Agreement is an administrative
proceeding performed by customs authorities.  It is necessary to note that the legal system of theSlovak Republic (Law No. 180/1 996 Coll.) currently does not include any special provision on the
time limits for legal action in this context.
3. Are there any ways other than the application stipulated in Articles 51 and 52 of the
TRIPS Agreement (hereafter referred to as "the Application") which enable a right holder torequest the competent authorities to suspend the release of the goods which infringeintellectual property rights or which are suspected to infringe intellectual property rights?
According to Section 60 of Law No. 180/1996 Coll. the customs authorities have the
obligation, when releasing the goods, to observe other rights, particularly intellectual propertyrights.  The right holder has no possibility of submitting a formal application based on which theadministrative authority (customs authority) should begin a proceeding.  The right holder maysubmit exclusively an inducement according to which the administrative body may act ex officio if itaccepts that the inducement is justified.
4. Please explain what term your country regards as "a reasonable period within which
the competent authorities shall inform the applicant whether or not they have accepted theApplication" stipulated in Article 52 of the TRIPS Agreement.
The general terms for decision making, according to Section 49 of Law No. 71/1967 Coll.,
are applicable.  In simple matters, the administrative authority should make a decision immediatelyor within 30 days.  In case of difficulties, the stipulated term is extended to 60 days withpossibilities to extend the term by the appeal authority.  If the term is extended for 60 days or more,the participant in the procedure must be informed about it.
5. Please explain the term during which the Application is effective.
This provision is not relevant in our legal system since each case should be officially
resolved.
6. Please explain whether a right holder is obliged to pay any fees to lodge the
Application.
Inducement that has not a form of due proposal for an opening of proceeding is not subject
to payment.  (See reply to question 3)IP/Q4/SVK/1
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7. Please indicate provisions of laws and ordinances which prescribe the "proceedings
leading to a decision on the merits of the case" stipulated in Article 55 of the TRIPSAgreement.  And please summarize their contents.
The Slovak legislation does not currently address these proceedings, however new specific
regulation is under consideration.
8. Please explain the specific procedure, if any, to be applied to the goods which are not
evident whether or not they infringe intellectual property rights, in Article 55 of the TRIPSAgreement.
As has been said above, the special course of legal action is not fixed.  If the infringement
of rights is not apparent, the custom authorities will ask the Industrial Property Office for itsopinion.
9. Please explain the responsibility that the competent authorities and other related
authorities take to the right holders when they fail to suspend the release into free circulationof goods which infringe intellectual property rights with regard to the suspension based on theApplication or the Ex Officio Action stipulated in Article 58 of the TRIPS Agreement.
In case that the customs authorities did not fulfil their obligation stipulated in Section 60 of
Law No. 180/1996 Coll. (see point 3) although they have known about the infringement of theintellectual property right or they should have known under the circumstances and consequently thedamage has arisen, the State is responsible for the damage caused by inappropriate administrativeproceedings according to Law No. 58/1969 Coll, Section 18 and following (Law on liability forinjury suffered because of a State authority decision or because of wrong administrative procedureNo. 58/1969 Coll.)
10. Please explain the responsibility that the competent authorities and other related
authorities take to the right holders when they examine goods which infringe intellectualproperty rights and nevertheless release them into free circulation with regard to thesuspension based on the Application or the Ex Officio Action stipulated in Article 58 of theTRIPS Agreement.
See the answer to question no. 9.  It is necessary to add that the precondition for
responsibility is an occurrence of damage as a loss of the property which can be objectivelyexpressed in monetary terms.  Jointly with the damages the party may also claim loss of profit.
11. Please explain the responsibility that the competent authorities and other related
authorities take to the importers when they suspend the release into free circulation of goodswhich do not infringe intellectual property rights with regard to the suspension based on theApplication or the Ex Officio Action stipulated in Article 58 of the TRIPS Agreement.
Also in this case the responsibilities may be considered in a sense of the answer to question
no. 9 if it is possible to state and prove an incorrect administrative course of action, the presence ofdamage and nexus causalis  between the action of a State body and damage inception.IP/Q4/SVK/1
Page 14
12. Is the right holder informed of identities of the importers and consignors when the
competent authorities "suspend" the goods which infringe on intellectual property rights orwhich are suspected to infringe intellectual property rights, as well as the case where the rightholder is informed of identities of the importers and consignors stipulated in Article 57 of theTRIPS Agreement?
The Law does not contain special provision.  In the practice, the customs authorities will
require an opinion of the right holder and the Industrial Property Office.  The right holder’s right toinformation on the origin of goods and documents attached are included in Section 25(2) of the Lawon Trademarks No. 55/1997 Coll.  This right can be enforced by the Court as well.
13. Please explain the measures to protect confidential information in the course of the
inspection stipulated in Article 57 of the TRIPS Agreement.  And please indicate provisions oflaws and ordinances which prescribe such measures.
Generally, the obligation of confidentiality of customs authorities is laid down in Section 12
of Law No. 180/1996 Coll.  In this way trade secrecy and confidential information are protected.The trade secrecy is defined by the Commercial Code in Sections 17 and 20 and determines also thecircle of responsible persons, including third parties besides customs authorities.  Revealing of orabusing trade secrecy may be considered as an act of unfair competition.  This may also create thebasis for compensation in damages as well as for penal sanction (Section 149 of the Penal Code).
14. Please explain the procedures of detentions and seizures to be ordered by the
competent authorities based on Articles 51 and 55 of the TRIPS Agreement.
The Slovak legislation does not currently address the issues contained in Articles 51-55 and
59 of the TRIPS Agreement.  Relevant legislation in this context is under consideration.
15. Please explain the procedures to appeal against any decisions ordered by the competent
authorities based on Articles 51 and 55 of the TRIPS Agreement.
See reply to question no. 14 above.
16. Please explain the basis for calculating the security or equivalent assurance stipulated
in Article 53 of the TRIPS Agreement that the competent authorities may require an applicantwhen they suspend the release into free circulation.
See reply to question no. 14 above.
17. Please explain who shall pay the cost of detentions based on Article 51 of the TRIPS
Agreement or destruction stipulated in Article 59 of the TRIPS Agreement.
See reply to question no. 14 above.
18. Please explain what kind of cases are regarded as "the exceptional circumstances" in
which the competent authorities may allow re-exportation of counterfeit trademark goodsstipulated in Article 59 of the TRIPS Agreement.
See reply to question no. 14 above.IP/Q4/SVK/1
Page 15
19. Please indicate names of laws and ordinances and their provisions in which the
suspension of the release of goods which infringe intellectual property rights or which aresuspected to infringe intellectual property rights is prescribed, as stipulated in Article 51 of theTRIPS Agreement.
See reply to question no. 14 above.
20. Please indicate which intellectual property rights are protected based on the
Application by a right holder.
See reply to question no. 14 above.
21. Please explain kinds and contents of documents which shall be provided by the
applicant to lodge the Application.
See reply to question no. 14 above.
22. Please explain the remedies which the judicial authorities order regarding copyright
and other related rights, patents, industrial designs, trademarks and layout-designs(topographies) of integrated circuits, including injunctions, damages, expenses, destruction orother disposal of infringing goods and materials/implements for their production.
In the beginning it might be useful to mention that in the Slovak Republic the judicial
system is composed of three levels – three instances.  The first instance is represented by districtcourts - courts of general jurisdiction.  Then there is the second instance, consisting of countycourts that function as appellate courts, and the last resort is represented by the supreme court,whose task is to reach decisions mainly in matters of extraordinary remedies.  In some specifiedcases of commercial and criminal law, county courts act as first-instance courts and the role of theappellate court is then passed to the supreme court.
Slovak courts and judiciary are fully independent.  This means that all the judges are bound
only by their consciousness and valid law.  The jurist opinion of courts of higher instance isobligatory to courts of lower-instance only with respect to a particular case.  Despite that, thereexists predominantly an informal system of precedence which is customarily applied to all cases,granting that decisions of the supreme court (primarily those generalising and representative) areofficially published and widely respected.  In appellate proceedings (judicial reviews) the relevantcourt of higher instance is able either to modify or to confirm the sentence or, if the sentence isfound inadequate, to suspend it altogether and remit the case to the respective court of lowerinstance.
The regulations concerning civil procedures are provided for by the Slovak Code of Civil
Procedure, Act No. 99/1963, Digest of Laws, in accordance with the wording of later regulations.Requirements that need to be complied with if a party intends to file an action are relatively simple.The party wishing to file an action has only to supply the following information in his or her formalwritten request:  identification of the parties involved in the enforcement procedure to be initiated,the merits of the case, the evidence proposed and the proposal for the court regarding the desirablekind of decision it should reach.
Pursuant to Section 80 (b) and (c) of the Slovak Code of Civil Procedure, in filing a legal
action the party is able to require the court to decide primarily whether the duty established by theIP/Q4/SVK/1
Page 16
law is complied within a legal relationship or in any violation of the law.  The court could also
determine whether there is any legal relationship or right at all given that there is an urgent valuableinterest concerning this question.  A party to an enforcement proceeding is thus entitled to ask thecourt to reach a decision in any of the ways corresponding to all the relevant criteria cited.  Inpractice this means that courts decide on matters of damage payments, of adequate compensation fora non-proprietary injury, which may also come in the form of financial compensation.  Courts areauthorised to order or forbid certain actions.  Courts also decide on the existence or non-existenceof a right or legal relationship, given that there is a valuable interest concerning such a decision.Representation of a party by his or her counsel is not mandatory in trial proceedings, and legal feesaccount for 4% of the recoverable debt, the maximum amount being set as Sk 100 000, incommercial cases as Sk 500 000.
There are several situations in which county courts function as first-instance courts, namely
in the following cases: enforcement of tradename rights, trademark rights and label of origin rights,then in matters of legal relationship concerning competition protection, unfair competition, patentrights, protected layout-designs and industrial designs and topography of semiconductor products asa subject of trade.  The same applies to relationships resulting from copyright and related rights.  Insuch cases the supreme court functions as an appellate court.
Formal requirements necessary for appealing against a sentence are more or less identical
with those of filing an action.  The structure of courts and their interrelationships are established bythe Act on Courts and Judiciary No. 335/1991, Digest of Laws, in accordance with the wording oflater regulations.  The jurisdiction of courts - concerning cases and localities as well as functions -is established by the already cited Slovak Code of Civil Procedure.
In the field of patent protection, there is the central administrative authority - the Slovak
Industrial Property Office ("SIPO"), which keeps the registers of separate subjects of industrialproperty, makes decisions regarding the entry or the cancellation in the registers, the annulment ofthe patent in the registers, changes in registers and the relevant agenda.  The decision of SIPO canbe, after all proper remedies of administrative proceedings have been exhausted, submitted to acourt, if there is a formal request, and the court will review the decision’s legality.  Decisions ofSIPO can be reviewed by the supreme court.
Aside from all the standard procedures of legal proceedings, in enforcement of rights, if
there is a case of emergency, a request can be applied to obtain preliminary measures, pursuant toSection 74 and the following provisions of the Slovak Code of Civil Procedure.  Pursuant toSection 76, paragraph 1, letters d), e) and f), through preliminary measures the court is authorisedprimarily to order a party to pay a security or to deposit an object in court, to do something, toabstain from something, or to bear something, or the court is able to forbid a party to use certainthings or rights.  Preliminary measures represent from a procedural point of view a considerablysimplified and rapid action, allowing the court to omit hearing the parties in person, but on the otherhand binding it to reach a decision within the set period of one month, starting from the day therespective action has been filed.  Preliminary measures can be enforced immediately, regardless ofany contingent appeal against them, however, their effect is limited temporarily and also by theircontent, since they should not substitute a proper d ecision on the merits of the case and their effect
is in principle bound to filing a proper legal action subsequently, within a proper time perioddetermined by the court.  As soon as a proper decision on the merits of the case is reached, theeffect of the preliminary measures ceases by law.  Otherwise it can cease when the time period
determined by the court is over, or if the party does not comply with his or her obligation and fails
to file a proper legal action regarding the case.IP/Q4/SVK/1
Page 17
23. Please explain whether the amount of damages which judicial authorities order the
person who infringes intellectual property rights to pay the right holder is adequatecompensation for the injury the right holder has suffered, and what criteria and the way forcalculation to decide the amount for compensation.
Damages payment or adequate compensation for non-proprietary injury concerning the
subject of industrial property falls within the jurisdiction of county courts.  The same applies tocopyright and related rights.  Damage payment in general is regulated by Section 420 and thefollowing provisions of the Civil Code.  Certain specialized laws also relate to this regulation, likefor example Section 26 of the Act on Trademarks, which aside from payment of damages alsoestablishes the right to adequate compensation for non-proprietary injury, granting that thiscompensation can also be submitted in the form of financial remuneration.  In the case of inventionsand industrial designs, the relevant regulations are stated in Section 75 of the Act No. 527/1990,Digest of Laws.  Above all the injured party has the obligations to substantiate his or her claim fordamage, calculate the payment and state who is responsible for the injury.  Here it is necessary tomention that in the Slovak Republic there has been a system of authorised experts functioning for along time, granting that these experts are called to provide their expert’s opinion in certain specificareas.
24. Please explain whether the amount of damages which judicial authorities order the
person who infringes intellectual property rights to pay the right holder includes investigationexpenses and appropriate attorney's fees.
The court will decide on the right to compensation for legal fees along with its decision on
the merits.  The right to legal fees payment is regulated by Section 137 and following of the SlovakCode of Civil Procedure.  Pursuant to Section 142 of the Slovak Code of Civil Procedure, the partywith full success in the action, will be granted by the court compensation for all legal fees necessaryto enforce the law or to defend the law efficiently against the party who was not successful.  In thecase of partial success, the court will distribute the payments appropriately or will decide that theparties are not entitled to compensation for legal fees.  The successful party is thus able to enforcethe right to compensation for all fees that were demonstrably used to gain effective law enforcementor defence, against the opposing party.  These fees also include personal expenses, expenses forexpert opinions, attorney’s charges, legal fees, and so on.  An analogous regulation can be foundalso in the Act on Administrative Proceedings.
25. Please describe to what extent the amount of damages have been estimated by courts
since 1 January 1996.  Please explain whether the amount of damages is adequatecompensation for the injury the right holder has suffered, and how such civil procedures areconsistent with Article 45 of the TRIPS Agreement.
Damages payment or adequate compensation for non-proprietary injury concerning the
subject of industrial property falls within the jurisdiction of county courts.  The same applies tocopyright and related rights.  Damage payment in general is regulated by Section 420 and followingof the Civil Code.  Certain specialized laws also relate to this regulation, like for exampleSection 26 of the Act on Trademarks, which aside from payment of damages also establishes theright to adequate compensation for non-proprietary injury, granting that this compensation can besubmitted also in the form of financial remuneration.  In the case of inventions and industrial
designs, the relevant regulations are stated in Section 75 of Act No. 527/1990, Digest of Laws.
Above all the injured party has the obligations to substantiate his or her claim for damage, calculateIP/Q4/SVK/1
Page 18
the payment and state, who is responsible for the injury.  Here it is necessary to mention, that in the
Slovak Republic there has been a system of authorised experts functioning for a long time, grantingthat these experts are called to provide their expert’s opinion in certain specific areas.
 The court will decide on the right to compensation for legal fees along with its decision on
the merits.  The right to legal fees payment is regulated by Section 137 and following of the SlovakCode of Civil Procedure.  Pursuant to Section 142 of the Slovak Code of Civil Procedure, the partywith full success in the action, will be granted by the court compensation for all legal fees necessaryto enforce the law or to defend the law efficiently against the party who was not successful.  In thecase of partial success, the court will distribute the payments appropriately or will decide that theparties are not entitled to compensation for legal fees.  The successful party is thus able to enforcethe right to compensation for all fees that were demonstrably used to gain effective law enforcementor defence, against the opposing party.  These also fees include personal expenses, expenses forexpert opinions, attorney’s charges, legal fees, and so on.  An analogous regulation can be foundalso in the Act on Administrative Proceedings.
The legal regulation does not include the notion of appropriate compensation.
Compensation for injury can be established only by means of claim for damage.  This, however, ispossible only in case the applicant acted unlawfully or contra bonos mores , or in case he or she was
engaged in unfair competition invol ving discrediting, in accordance w ith the wording of Section 50,
the Commercial Code.  By discrediting is to be understood any action th rough which a competitor
provides or spreads false information about the situation, products and achievements of anothercompetitor, if the information is able to cause any injury to another competitor.  In case the actionof the applicant could not be found unlawful or contra bonos mores , the enforcement of
compensation would be difficult, since no damage in the legal sense occurred.  In this particularcase the law of the Slovak Republic does not correspond sufficiently with the TRIPS Agreement.
The statistical data on the extent of the damages estimated by courts since 1 January 1996 is
not available.
26. Please explain the kinds and amounts of penalties (imprisonment or fines) in criminal
cases.  Please also explain whether these penalties are consistent with Article 61 of the TRIPSAgreement which requires provisions for a sufficient deterrent, consistently with the level ofpenalties applied for crimes of a corresponding gravity.
The required statistical data is not available directly in the Office.  The Office has asked the
Ministry of Justice and the Central Customs Administration for the provision of the above-mentioned information.
In order to answer the question regarding the criminal aspects of intellectual property
protection it would be best to quote the concrete provisions of the Code of Criminal Procedure,Sections 150 through 152.
Section 150 - Infringement of the rights to a trademark, trade name and protected
appellation of origin
(1) The person who has put on the market products or provided services marked with a
mark identical to a trademark, the exclusive right for which belongs to another
person, or a sign confusingly similar to this trademark, is punished byIP/Q4/SVK/1
Page 19
imprisonment for the period of one year, or by a monetary fine, or forfeiture of a
thing.
(2) Equal punishment is imposed on a person who in order to achieve economic benefit:
(a) unlawfully uses a trade name or whatever sign confusingly similar with this
name, or
(b) puts into circulation products unlawfully marked with an appellation of
origin to which the exclusive right belongs to another person, or with anappellation of origin confusingly similar.
Section 151 - Infringement of industrial rights
The person who unlawfully infringes the right to a protected invention, industrial design,
utility model or topography of semiconductor products is punished by imprisonment for the
period of up to three years, or a monetary fine.
Section 152 - Infringement of copyright
(1) The person who unlawfully disposes with a work which is the subject-matter of the
protection according to the copyright, or with a performance of a performing artist,with a sound or visual recording, with a broadcast or television programme whichare the subject-matter of the right similar to the copyright, in the manner whichbelongs to the author, performing artist, maker of a sound or visual recording, abroadcast or television organisation or other holder of this right, or the person whoinfringes the above-mentioned rights in some other manner, is punished byimprisonment for the period of up to two years, or by a monetary fine, or byforfeiture of a thing.
(2) The perpetrator is punished by imprisonment for a period from six months up to
five years, or by a monetary fine, or forfeiture of a thing, if:
(a) this person gains by the action stated in paragraph 1 considerable benefit, or(b) this person commits an act of a large scope.
When considering unlawful actions in terms of their intensity and thus establishing a
criminal act it should be stressed that it is a matter for the judge’s discretion and before him that ofthe prosecutor.  As for Section 150 the condition is th e release of goods into free circulation, or the
release of a service with a direct unlawful use of a protected sign.  Experience which could be
generalised, above all by the judiciary, has not yet been gained in the Slovak Republic.
Second part
In any case the determination of the amount of damage is a matter for the plaintiff.  In case
the amount of damage is adequately and reliably justified and proved the court has the grounds to
adjudicate on the claimed damage.  In cases where the right holder suffers material loss which does
not have the character of damage from the legal point of view, as it was not caused by an illegal
action, or in case of the occurrence of non-material loss, the court can assign the right to adequate
satisfaction to an injured party which can also be monetary performance.  In such case the amount ofIP/Q4/SVK/1
Page 20
monetary equivalent representing the satisfaction is determined in the judge’s discretion which is
obviously based on the submitted request and, although it is not an objectively established fact but the
fact modelled on the basis of a discretion, it must have a rational basis.
We consider the above-mentioned facts answer the question as to what would be regarded as
expenses of the right holder which have to be reimbursed pursuant to Article 45.1.
A party to a proceeding who is successful, or partly successful, can be adjudicated the right
to compensation for costs of the proceedings to the extent of his success.  These include apart fromlegal fees, attorney’s fees and also other fees which were provable and purposefully expended inrelation to the enforcement of the right in court.  The reimbursement of attorney’s fees isobjectively calculated according to the tariffs given by the Decree of the Ministry of Justicedetermining the remuneration of attorneys for individual acts according to their kind, amount ofclaim and number.
As for the implementation of Article 45.2, second sentence of the TRIPS Agreement,
according to our opinion it is included in Section 26 (3) of the Law on Trademarks No. 55/1997Coll., which adjudicates the right to the compensation for damage, or the right to adequatesatisfaction, which can also be monetary performance regardless of whether the infringer infringedthe rights of the right holder and caused, knowingly or unknowingly, damage or other loss.
IV. REPLIES TO QUESTIONS POSED BY SWITZERLAND
1. Please explain whether international treaties which contain detailed provisions
addressed to the (judicial) authorities and not to the State itself are considered as self-executing in your system?  If not, when there is a divergence between the intellectual propertylegislation/practices and the international agreement in your country, does the latterautomatically prevail?  If not, please explain the means allowing your country to fulfil theinternational obligations?  Please cite the relevant texts or jurisprudence.
First of all it is necessary to reply to the part of question 1 regarding precedence of ratified
and published international conventions over Slovak domestic law in case of any contradiction.  Inthis respect it must be stressed that in accordance with Article 11 of the Constitution of the SlovakRepublic only the conventions regulating human rights have direct precedence before law, so that incases where an international convention provides for the rights of the above-mentioned character toa broader extent than the domestic law, and also in the cases where there is direct contradictionbetween any convention and the law, the court can apply directly the international convention.Pursuant to Article 125(e) of the Constitution of  the Slovak Republic other internationa l conventions
also have precedence when the Constitutional Court makes decisions regarding the conformity ofgenerally binding legal regulations with international conventions proclaimed in the mannerprovided for the promulgation of laws.  If the Constitutional Court makes a decision with respect tothe non-conformity of the law with any international convention, this law, or its relevant part,ceases to be in force after the period of six months if, in the meantime, it has not been amended bythe Parliament according to the decision of the Constitutional Court.  As a result of the above, anyinternational convention other than the convention on human rights has precedence over thedomestic law, but this precedence cannot be applied directly, rather only after the above-mentioned
process in the Constitutional Court.
The process described under Article 125 of the Constitution is not used in practice because
the international obligations in the form of agreements published in the Collection of Laws becomepart of domestic law.  This status of international agreement results from provisionsIP/Q4/SVK/1
Page 21
paragraphs 4(3), 6(1b) and 2 of Law No. 1/1993 Coll.  The contingent contradiction or
imperfection of legislation is eliminated by amendment or recodification of the mentioned provision.
2. Article 55 of the TRIPS Agreement provides that "... in appropriate cases, this time
limit [of ten days] may be extended by another ten working days".  Is such time extensionforeseen in your laws?  If yes, please cite the relevant provisions.  If not, please explain howan applicant can avail himself of this possibility as provided by the TRIPS Agreement?
The regulations regarding trademarks and customs at present do not entitle the right holder
to officially request intervention by the customs authorities in matters regarding imitated orcounterfeit products in relation to trademarks and copyright.  According to Section 60 of the Lawon Customs No. 180/1996 Coll. the customs authorities are obliged to take into considerationprohibitions and restrictions with regard to intellectual property protection in customs proceedings.The right holder can initiate the suspension of goods at the border and in case of his right thecustoms authorities are obliged to respect this.  This amendment, though, is not sufficient as theright holder does not become a party to a proceeding through this action and has no proceduralrights which he would have if he was a party to a proceeding.  On the other hand a financialguarantee cannot be required in cases where the suspension of goods would be established asunjustified and would result in damage, or material loss.  The present legislation does not complywith the provisions of Articles 52 through 57 and 59 of the TRIPS Agreement.  Specific newlegislation for the border measures addressing among other the provisions of the Articles 52 through57 and 59 of the TRIPS Agreement is under consideration.
V. REPLIES TO QUESTIONS POSED BY THE UNITED STATES
General obligations
1. Articles 41.1 and 42 of the TRIPS Agreement require that procedures be available for
the effective enforcement of the intellectual property rights covered by the Agreement.  Pleasedescribe the structure of the judicial and administrative
3  procedures in the Slovak Republic in
which parties can enforce their intellectual property rights, at local, provincial and national
levels, indicating the jurisdiction of each type of court or administrative body and explainingthe interrelationships, if any, of the various types of courts and administrative bodies.  Citethe laws or other authorities establishing the structure, including each type of court andadministrative body.
In the beginning it might be useful to mention that in the Slovak Republic the judicial system
is composed of three levels – three instances.  The first instance is represented by district courts -
courts of general jurisdiction.  Then there is the second instance, consisting of county courts that
function as appellate courts, and the last resort is represented by the supreme court, whose task is to
reach decisions mainly in matters of extraordinary remedies.  In some specified cases of commercial
and criminal law, county courts act as first-instance courts and the role of the appellate court is thenpassed to the supreme court.
Slovak courts and judiciary are fully independent.  This means that all the judges are bound
only by their consciousness and valid law.  The jurist opinion of courts of higher instance is
obligatory to courts of lower-instance only with resp ect to a particular case.  Despite that, there exists
predominantly an informal system of precedence wh ich is customarily applied to all cases, granting
                                                     
3 These questions apply to both judicial and administrative enforcement of intellectual property rights
because of Article 49 of the TRIPS Agreement.IP/Q4/SVK/1
Page 22
that decisions of the supreme court (primarily those generalising and representative) are officially
published and widely respected.  In appellate proceedings (judicial reviews) the relevant court of
higher instance is able either to modify or to confirm the sentence or, if the sentence is found
inadequate, to suspend it altogether and remit the case to the respective court of lower instance.
The regulations concerning civil procedures are provided for by the Slovak Code of Civil
Procedure, Act No. 99/1963, Digest of Laws, in accordance with the wording of later regulations.Requirements that need to be complied with if a party intends to file an action are relatively simple.
The party wishing to file an action has only to s upply the following information in his or her formal
written request: identification of the parties involved in the enforcement procedure to be initiated, the
merits of the case, the evidence proposed and the proposal for the court regarding the desirable kind
of decision it should reach.
Pursuant to Section 80, letters b) and c) of the Slovak Code of Civil Procedure, in filing a
legal action the party is able to require the court to decide primarily whether the duty established bythe law is complied with in a legal relationship or in any violation of the law.  The court could also
determine whether there is any legal relationship or right at all given that there is an urgent valuable
interest concerning this question.  A party to an enforcement proceeding is thus entitled to ask the
court to reach a decision in any of the ways corresponding to all the relevant criteria cited.  In practice
this means that courts decide on matters of damage payments, of adequate compensation for anon-proprietary injury, which may also come in th e form of financial compensation.  Courts are
authorised to order or forbid certain actions.  Courts also decide on the existence or non-existence of a
right or legal relationship, given that there is a valuable interest concerning such a decision.
Representation of a party by his or her counsel is not mandatory in trial proceedings, and legal fees
account for 4% of the recoverable debt, the maximum amount being set as Sk 100 000, in commercialcases as Sk 500 000.
There are several situations in which county courts function as first-instance courts, namely
in the following cases:  enforcement of tradename rights, trademark rights and label of originrights, then in matters of legal relationship concerning competition protection, unfair competition,patent rights, protected layout-designs and industrial designs and topography of semiconductor
products as a subject of trade.  The same applies to relationships resulting from copyrights and
related rights.  In such cases the supreme court functions as an appellate court.
Formal requirements necessary for appealing against a sentence are more or less identical
with those of filing an action.  The structure of courts and their interrelationships are established bythe Act on Courts and Judiciary No. 335/1991, Digest of Laws, in accordance with the wording oflater regulations.  The jurisdiction of courts - concerning cases and localities as well as functions -is established by the already cited Slovak Code of Civil Procedure.
In the field of patent protection, there is the central administrative authority - the Slovak
Industrial Property Office ("SIPO"), which keeps the registers of separate subjects of industrialproperty, makes decisions regarding the entry or the cancellation in the registers, the annulment ofthe patent in the registers, changes in registers and the relevant agenda.  The decision of SIPO canbe, after all proper remedies of administrative proceedings have been exhausted, submitted to acourt, if there is a formal request, and the court will review the decision’s legality.  Decisions ofSIPO can be reviewed by the supreme court.
Aside from all the standard procedures of legal proceedings, in enforcement of rights, if
there is a case of emergency, a request can be applied to obtain preliminary measures, pursuant toSection 74 and the following provisions of the Slovak Code of Civil Procedure.  Pursuant toIP/Q4/SVK/1
Page 23
Section 76, paragraph 1, letters d), e) and f), through preliminary measures the court is authorised
primarily to order a party to pay a security or to deposit an object in court, to do something, toabstain from something, or to bear something, or the court is able to forbid a party to use certainthings or rights.  Preliminary measures represent from a procedural point of view a considerablysimplified and rapid action, allowing the court to omit hearing the parties in person, but on the otherhand binding it to reach a decision within the set period of one month, starting from the day therespective action has been filed.  Preliminary measures can be enforced immediately, regardless ofany contingent appeal against them, however, their effect is limited temporarily and also by theircontent, since they should not substitute a proper d ecision on the merits of the case and their effect
is in principle bound to filing a proper legal action subsequently, within a proper time perioddetermined by the court.  As soon as a proper decision on the merits of the case is reached, theeffect of the preliminary measures ceases by law.  Otherwise it can cease when the time perioddetermined by the court is over, or if the party does not comply with his or her obligation and failsto file a proper legal action regarding the case.
2. Please describe briefly the procedure that must be followed by a foreign party to
initiate an enforcement procedure in each of the courts and administrative bodies identified inresponse to question 1 and cite the legal authorities establishing those procedures.
Foreign parties have in principle the same position both in courts and before the Slovak
Industrial Property Office as nationals or residents of the Slovak Republic.  As far as the languagebarrier is concerned, a court is obliged to grant translation at the expenses of the party not speakingthe Slovak language.  In case there is a citizen of the Slovak Republic who does not speak Slovak,in court, the translation fees are paid by the State.  Unlike a court proceeding, in an administrativeproceeding before the Slovak Industrial Property Office a foreign party has to be represented by hisor her patent attorney authorised to act before SIPO, that is, a patent attorney acting in the SlovakRepublic.
3. Please identify any requirement that a foreign party must meet to initiate a proceeding
in the courts and administrative bodies identified in answer to question 1 that is not requiredof a national or resident of the Slovak Republic and cite the legal authorities providing forthose differences.
See the reply to question 2.  As has already been stated, the position of a foreign party is in
principle identical with that of a citizen of the Slovak Republic.
4. Articles 41.1 and 48 of the TRIPS Agreement require establishment of safeguards
against abuse of judicial and administrative enforcement procedures, including provision foradequate compensation for injury suffered because of such abuse.  Please describe the meansavailable under the law of the Slovak Republic to prevent abuse of judicial and administrativeprocedures or to remedy damages suffered as a result of such abuse and cite the legalauthorities for those means.
The question of compensation for injury suffered because of abuse of judicial and
administrative enforcement procedures is provided for by the Act on liability for injury sufferedbecause of a State authority decision or because of wrong administrative procedure No. 58/1969Coll.
In the case of an injury caused by illegal decision or sentence it is necessary to make a
formal claim for damage at the central authority superior to that authority which has caused theIP/Q4/SVK/1
Page 24
injury.  Where the claim is not settled within 6 months, the injured party is able to claim his or her
right in court.  The State is liable for injuries caused by abuse of administrative proceedings.  Inthis case no preliminary hearing of the claim is necessary.  The claim can be prosecuted directlyagainst the State and the particular authority which has caused the injury.
5. Article 41.2 addresses, among other things, the cost of judicial and administrative
enforcement proceedings.  Please describe any fees charged by judicial or administrativeofficials for filing legal actions involving intellectual property or for pursuing such actions onceinitiated, cite the legal authorities for such fees, and provide copies of the documents used toinform the public of such fees.
Legal fees are established by the Act on Legal Fees No. 71/1992, Digest of Laws.  In the
general part of this Act the following subjects are treated: legal fees, payers, exemption from legalfees, occurrence and cessation of payment duty, etc.  A separate part of the Act, the Scale of LegalFees, establishes particular amounts chargeable as fees.  Considering enforcement of intellectualproperty rights, the second item is especially important, as long as it deals with actions concerningpatents, inventions, industrial designs, layout-designs, topographies of semiconductor products aswell as with copyright and other related rights.  Legal fees here account for 4% of the price of thechose in action, the minimum being Sk 500, and the maximum Sk 500 000.  In case the chose inaction cannot be financially valued (e.g. in action for determination whether there exists any law atall), the legal fee is then established as Sk 2 000.  Trade name rights actions, trademark actions andlabel of origin actions are regulated by Item 3 of the Scale of Legal Fees, all of these actionsrequiring a charge of Sk3 000.  Legal fees are due as soon as the action is filed and also when aparty is appealing against a decision.
Administrative fees, that is the fees due for acts of administrative proceedings, are generally
regulated by the Act on Administrative Fees No. 145/1995, Digest of Laws.  As well as the Act onLegal Fees, this Act consists of two parts - in its general part it treats the subject of administrativefees, of payers, of the occurrence of payment duty, etc.  Its second part establishes legal feesaccording to specific legal acts.  From the point of view of enforcement of intellectual propertyrights, Part XVI of the Scale of Legal Fees is especially important, as it establishes fees for acts inenforcement proceedings before the Slovak Industrial Property Office.  As examples we cite here afew of the most important items: patent application – Sk 800, request for patent examiningprocedure up to 10 claims – Sk 2 500, patent deed up to 10 pages – Sk 2 000, extending the patentlife, the third, the fourth and the fifth year, total – Sk 5 000, the sixth year – Sk 1 700, lay-outdesign application – Sk 700, industrial design application – Sk 600, topography of semiconductorproducts application – Sk 5 000, trademark application up to 3 segments of products or services –Sk 3 000, request for erasure of a trademark from the register of trademarks – Sk 600, request for arenewal of trademark registration – Sk 2 500, application for label of origin – Sk 2 000.
Legal and administrative fees are established in relevant Acts in the Digest of Laws and thus
are fully available to public.  Please refer to the relevant passages of both Acts set out in the Annex.IP/Q4/SVK/1
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6. Article 41.2 also addresses the timeliness of judicial and administrative enforcement
proceedings.  Please cite to the legal authorities establishing any time limits for judicial andadministrative proceedings and, if it has not already been done, provide copies of the laws orregulations in question.
Procedural regulation of civil proceedings in court establishes no strict time periods
concerning the end of a proceeding which is, eventually the court decision.  On the other hand,pursuant to Article 48, paragraph 2 of the Constitution of the Slovak Republic, "Everybody has theright to have his or her case heard publicly, without unnecessary delays and in his or herpresence...".  This basic human right is extended in Section 100, paragraph 1 of the Slovak Code ofCivil Procedure, which goes as follows: "As soon as the proceeding has b een initiated, the court
proceeds further, even if there are no further proposals, and in such a manner that the case be heardand decided as fast as possible." The issue of delays in legal proceedings has already been treatedby the Constitutional Court of the Slovak Republic, which in a particular case proclaimedunnecessary delays in legal proceedings as violation of a basic human right, in accordance with thewording of the cited regulation of Article 48 of the Constitution of the Slovak Republic.  TheSlovak Code of Civil Procedure establishes also quite a few time periods concerning the procedurallaw.  Section 204 establishes the time period available for appeal against a decision as 15 days sincethe decision delivery.  Section 230 establishes the time period for a special legal remedy, inparticular a re-enforcement of proceedings as a limitation of 3 months since the reasons forre-enforcement cited in the law were discovered and 3 years since the finality of judgment.Section 240 also establishes a time period of 3 months for a special legal remedy - appeal against adecision, which can also be applied only on the basis of explicitly specified reasons, which ingeneral represent violation of the law from the side of the court.  Section 250, letter b) establishes atime period of two months allowed for a legal revision of a decision adopted by an administrativebody.  Section 160, paragraph 1 establishes a time period of three days for complying with theobligation resulting from a court decision, if the court does not specify a different time period.Only Section 75, paragraph 2 of the Slovak Code of Civil Procedure establishes a duty for the courtto decide in the matter of application for preliminary measures.
Civil Code of Law also provides for a considerably large number of time periods
concerning the material law.  Sections 100 to 105 of the Civil Code of Law establish a time periodfor enforcement as being three years since the law could have been enforced for the first time.Section 106, the Civil Code of Law establishes a time period that allows to enforce a claim fordamage of three years since the damage occurred, at the last, however, the claim has to be enforcedwithin two years since the injured party found out who was responsible for the damage.  The rightto claim damage for a bodily injury never lapses, thus it can always be enforced.  The right ofsubmitting groundles s pecuniary advantage is enforceable within the same time period, otherwise it
lapses.  The right to execute a valid court decision or administrative decision lapses after the termof ten years since that decision came into effect.  For administrative proceedings there exists a keyregulation - the Act on Administrative Proceedings No. 71/1967, Digest of Laws, pursuant to whichthe proceedings in the Slovak Industrial Property Office are also carried out and, if a special legalregulation does not state it otherwise, Section 49 establishes time periods available for reachingdecisions in administrative proceedings.  In simple cases the respective administrative body isobliged to reach a decision without any delays, in other cases, if a special legal regulation does notstate it otherwise, the administrative body is obliged to reach a decision within 30 days, in difficultcases within 60 days, since the proceedings initiation.  If it is not possible - with respect to thenature of the case - to reach a decision within the established term of 60 days, an appellate body has
to decide in matters of possible prolongation of the term.  If the term is to be prolonged beyond 30,
eventually 60 days, the party to the enforcement proceedings has to be duly notified.  Pursuant toIP/Q4/SVK/1
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Section 54, a party to a proceeding is able to appeal against a decision within the time period of 15
days since the decision was announced, that means, in principle, delivered in writing.  Concerningenforcement of trademark rights, this time period is extended up to one month.  Other time periodswith respect to enforcement of special legal remedies are established in sections 53 to 68.  As far asthe Act on Trademarks is concerned, the time periods allowing a party to appeal against a decisionare modified, as has already been stated above in Section 42, and this prolongation applies also togrievances against a published application for a trademark according to Section 9, where the timeperiod is up to three months.
7. Please explain any provisions in the enforcement system in the Slovak Republic that
ensure expeditious remedies.  In addition, please explain what provisions are available toprevent deliberate delays by the parties to a proceeding and indicate the circumstances inwhich such provisions will be applied.
The measure, which is available and also used to prevent deliberate delays of legal
proceedings is predominantly the regulation of Section 101, the Slovak Code of Civil Procedure.This regulation orders all the parties to contribute as much as possible to reaching the aim of theproceeding, above all by identification of evidence and heeding the orders of the court.  The courtproceeds further, even if the parties are not active.  If a summoned party does not appear in personwithout submitting a request for postpo ning the hearing, the court is au thorised to act in the party’s
absence, with regard to the content of the file and to the evidence so far presented.  If the courtappeals to a party to make a statement regarding a particular proposal, it can attach to it a warning,that if the party does not make any statements within a certain time period, he or she will be takenas having no objections to the proposal in question.  The court can adopt disciplinary measuresagainst a party that is inactive and ignorant of the court's appeals, these measures including finesand even judgment summons by the police.  Such a party can also be ordered to pay the legal feescaused by him or her.  Disciplinary measures are established in Sections 53 and 54, as well as inother regulations of the Slovak Code of Civil Procedure.  There is an analogous regulation in theAct on Administrative Proceedings, stating that deliberate protraction of proceedings caused byinactivity or disobedience of the competent body on the side of a party or a third party can bepenalised by a financial fine.  Pursuant to Section 50, Act on Administrative Proceedings, if theadministrative body does not act in the case, or eventually does not reach any decision within thetime periods established for these purposes by law, that is in the above-mentioned time periods of30 and 60 days, and if the remedy cannot be granted otherwise, the superior body, which wouldnormally function as an appellate body, is authorised to decide the case.
8. Article 41.3 of the TRIPS Agreement requires that decisions on the merits of a case
preferably be in writing, the better to determine the reasoning on which the decision is based.Please state, with regard to each type of court and administrative body identified inquestion 1, whether judges or administrative officials must render their decisions in writingand cite the legal authorities requiring such written opinions.
The Slovak Code of Civil Procedure strictly determines a written form required for each
decision on the merits of the case and (with slight exceptions) also for each decision of a proceduralnature.  This written form and its delivery to the hands of a party to the proceeding is established inSections 157 and 158 of the Slovak Code of Civ il Procedure.  The written form and the obligation
of delivery of a procedural decision are established in Sections 168 and 169 of the Slovak Code ofCivil Procedure.  The same holds true for decisions made in administrative proceedings, where the
required details concerning the decision, including its written form and delivery in the hands of allIP/Q4/SVK/1
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the parties are established in Section 47 of the Act on Administrative Proceedings No. 71/1967,
Digest of Laws.
9. Article 41.3 also requires that decisions on the merits of a case be based only on
evidence in respect of which parties had an opportunity to be heard.  Please state, with regardto each type of court and administrative body identified in question 1, what factors may beconsidered by a judge or administrative official in rendering a decision and cite the legalauthorities establishing the basis on which judges and administrative officials may reachdecisions.
This is a wide question.  The basic right of a party to a legal and administrative proceeding
is established by Article 48 of the Constitution of the Slovak Republic, as follows:
"(1) No one can be deprived of their legitimate judge.  The competence of courts
will be stated by the law.
(2) Everyone has the right to have his or her case heard in public, without
unnecessary delays and in his or her presence, so that he or she is able tomake a statement regarding all evidence presented.  The public can beexcluded only in specific cases stated by the law."
More detailed rights and duties of all parties to legal proceedings, as well as all the forms
and methods of presenting evidence are established in the Slovak Code of Civil Procedure - ActNo. 99/1963, Digest of Laws, in accordance with the wording of later regulations.  An analogousregulation concerning administrative proceedings is stated by Act on Administrative ProceedingsNo. 71/1967, Digest of Laws.
10. Article 41.4 obligates WTO Members to provide for judicial review of certain judicial
and administrative decisions in intellectual property enforcement proceedings.  Please describewhat legal limitations, if any, are placed upon the ability of a party to an intellectual propertyenforcement proceeding to have both procedural rulings and final decisions reviewed by aseparate judicial authority, and cite the legal authorities providing for such reviews.
The right of every party to appeal against an administrative decision and have it reviewed
by a separate, independent court, is provided for by Article 46, paragraph 2, Constitution of theSlovak Republic.  From procedural point of view this review of legality of administrative decisionsis regulated as a whole by Section 244 and following of the Slovak Code of Civil Procedure.  Inprinciple each and every administrative decision is subject to the review power of courts unless thelaw, that is, the Slovak Code of Civil Procedure, explicitly exempts it from this power.  Pursuant toSection 250, paragraph 1, letter b), the Slovak Code of Civil Procedure, the action has to be filedwithin two months since the administrative body of last resort delivered its decision to the respectiveparty.  Section 249, paragraph 2 establishes the requirements of an action.  Section 248 defineswhich decisions are not subject to the review power of courts, with the important addition, that nodecision concerning basic rights and freedoms can ever be exempt from this power.  Thus we cansay that the review power of courts is general and there are no other limitations than those alreadymentioned here.  The rights and obligations of all the parties to legal and administrative proceedingsare established in the Slovak Code of Civil Procedure and in the Act on AdministrativeProceedings.  Every party to an enforcement proceeding has the right to be notified officially and in
writing about any actions that have been filed concerning him or her, plus acquiring all the
important enclosures like documents as evidence, etc.  The party to a proceeding also has the rightIP/Q4/SVK/1
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and duty, if the competent body so decides, to make a written statement concerning the action filed
and also concerning all the evidence.  The party has the right to be present in person while all theevidence is presented and is also able to propose other evidence and be heard in relation to it.  Incases where a party has been deprived of the above-mentioned rights, this constitutes a reason forthe appellate body to cancel the decision and remit the case for a further proceeding.
Civil and administrative procedures and remedies
11. Article 42 requires that defendants be notified of judicial and administrative
intellectual property enforcement proceedings brought against them.  Please describe theprocedures followed by each type of court and administrative body identified in question 1 fornotifying defending parties regarding proceedings that have been initiated against them,indicate the information provided regarding the proceeding and cite the legal authoritiesestablishing these procedures.
See reply to question 10 above.
12. Article 42 also requires that parties to intellectual property enforcement proceedings
must be able to be represented by counsel and must not be subject to overly burdensomerequirements to appear personally.  Please describe any limitations under the SlovakRepublic’s laws on the ability of a party in such a proceeding to be represented by independentlegal counsel and any requirements imposed on the party to appear personally in a proceeding.Please cite the legal authorities providing such limitations and imposing such requirements.
The questions concerning representation of a party by a counsel are provided for by the
Slovak Code of Civil Procedure, Section 24 and the following.  There are no limitations to therepresentation in court with one exception - only a legally competent person is able to act as acounsel.  In case a party is represented by a counsel, his or her personal appearance in court is notnecessary.  There is only one exception when the court finds personal appearance of a partyinevitable, for example if certain evidence must be presented by hearing the party in question.There are no limitations to the right of a party to a proceedings to appear personally in order tosubstantiate his or her claims and to make statements to everything that is presented.  On thecontrary, this is a basic right granted by the Constitution.  Neither are there any limitations to theright of all parties to propose evidence.  On the other hand, the court is authorised to judge,whether the presentation of particular evidence is or is not inevitable for a proper finding on themerits of the case.  Evidence and its presentation is regulated in the Slovak Code of CivilProcedure, Second Chapter, Section 120 and following.
13. Under Article 42, parties are to be entitled to substantiate claims and present relevant
evidence.  Please describe any limitations under the law of the Slovak Republic on a party’sability to substantiate a claim or to present relevant evidence and cite the legal authorityproviding such limitations.
See replies to questions 11 and 12 above.IP/Q4/SVK/1
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14. Article 42 requires, with one narrow exception, that there be a means to identify and
protect confidential information during judicial and administrative intellectual propertyenforcement proceedings.  Please describe the means provided under the law of the SlovakRepublic for parties to identify and have protected confidential information required to bepresented in order to prove their claims and cite the legal authorities providing for suchidentification and protection.
The court can compel everybody, including a party to the proceedings, to produce a
document or an object as evidence (Section 129, 2, Code of Civil Procedure).  The court may alsoorder the examination of a thing in the place where it is located (Section 130).  The court may alsohear the parties to the proceedings as witnesses (Section 131).  Disobedience of the court’s ordercan be sanctioned by imposing a penalty several times in order.
According to Sections 35, 37 and 38 of the Law on Civil Procedure similar jurisdiction also
has an administrative authority.
The examination of submitted evidence is at the court’s discretion.  In cases where the
plaintiff partially lacks evidence the court can also take into consideration and, for the plaintiff’sbenefit, examine circumstantial evidence and, in extreme cases, also deal with the question of thetrustworthiness of the party to the proceedings and decide for the plaintiff’s benefit but only if theopposing party does not rebut evidence produced by the plaintiff.  In specific cases the law dealswith the supposed lack of evidence of the injured party by means of rebuttable legal presumptionsas, for example, it is provided by the patent law in Section 13, 2 of Law No. 527/1990 Coll. asfollows:  "If the patent is granted to a process the rights to this patent are extended to the productsobtained directly by a patented process, when identical products are considered to be obtained bythe procedure of protection if it is not proved otherwise."  The court then can require from anyperson to submit documents, or objects, or it can request from this person to testify regarding thefacts proposed by a party to the proceedings if this party is not capable of producing evidence.
The protection of official (State) and professional secrets is provided by Law No. 100/1996
Coll.  According to Section 3, 1, a professional secret is information or a thing connected with anactivity of a State body, community or other legal entity indicated in the list of facts presenting thesubject of a professional secret of a central body or community which, with respect to itsimportance, must be protected against disclosure, misuse, damage, destruction, loss, or stealing.
Every State body makes a list of official secrets whose release and deposit is published in
the Collection of Laws.  In the case of the Industrial Property Office the subject-matter of itsofficial secrets is considered to be an invention, utility model, industrial design, and topography ofsemiconductor products when an applicant or right holder requests secrecy.
In such cases the treatment of the documentary material and access to it are the subject of a
special protection regime in accordance with the law.  The same procedure is applied in a legalproceedings
A further category is trade secrets, and as such production secrets should be considered.
With regard to the above-mentioned the protection is provided by the Commercial CodeNo. 513/1991 Coll.  Section 17 of the Commercial Code defines trade secrets as follows:  "Thesubject-matter of the rights which belong to an enterprise are also trade secrets.  Trade secrets are
made up of all facts of trade, production, or technical nature connected with an enterprise, and
which have real or at least potential material or non-material value, and which are not generallyIP/Q4/SVK/1
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accessible in trade circles, and should be officially secret if an entrepreneur so wishes and he
himself in an adequate manner secures their secrecy."
According to Section 20:  "The entrepreneur is entitled to legal protection against breach or
jeopardy of the right to trade secret as against unfair competition."
The breach of trade secret is defined in Section 51 as follows:"The breach of trade secret is an action by which a person unlawfully states, reveals
to another person, or for himself or for another person makes use of a trade secret(Section 17), which can be used in competition and about which he obtainsknowledge in the following manner:
a) The secret was confided to him or it became accessible in some other
manner (e.g. from technical documents, instructions, drawings, models ordesigns) based on an employee relationship with his competitor, or on thebasis of some other relationship with the competitor, or in the execution ofhis function to which he was called by the court or some other body,
b) by his own action or another person’s action which is contrary to law."From the quoted part of Section 51, a) and b), the obligations of third parties in relation to a
trade secret are evident, albeit very generally.
For the purpose of the proceedings before the Anti-Monopoly Office the obligations of the
third persons are defined in Sections 15 and 16 of the Law on Protection of Economic CompetitionNo. 188/1994.  In Section 15 it is provided:  "Entrepreneurs are obliged to submit to the Office therequired documents and information, to comply with examination of these documents andinformation and to enable employees of the Office to enter all objects, premises and means oftransport of entrepreneurs".
In Section 16 it is provided:(1) "The documents and information obtained by the Office from entrepreneurs of the
bodies of the State admini stration and communities can be used only for the
purposes for which they were requested."
(2) "The employees of the Office as well as the persons commissioned to fulfil the tasks
which belong to the competence of the Office are obliged to adhere to secrecyregarding the facts making up trade secrets, about which they obtained knowledgewhen fulfilling the above-mentioned tasks."
The last category represents confidential information, i.e. the facts which do not meet the
criteria of official, professional or trade secret but there is a rational and socially acceptable reasonfor their confidential treatment.  In general, this category is not regulated by a specific law.However, some norms of procedural character regulate the obligations of the third parties(especially of the state authorities) in relation to confidential information.IP/Q4/SVK/1
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The above-mentioned norms are Sections 44 and 124 of the Code of Civil Procedure,
Section 23 of the Law on Civil Procedure No. 71/1967 Coll., Section 4 of the Decree of theMinistry of Justice - Regulations of Procedure for District and Regional Courts No. 66/1992 Coll.
15. Article 43.1 of the TRIPS Agreement requires that judicial and administrative officials
be able to order a party to an intellectual property enforcement proceeding to producerelevant evidence in that party’s control identified by the opposing party when the latter partyhas presented reasonably available evidence in support of its claims.  Please describe how andin what circumstances judges and administrative officials may order production of relevantevidence in intellectual property enforcement proceedings and cite the legal authoritiesproviding for such orders.
See reply to question 14 above.
16. Information ordered to be produced, referred to in question 15, must be protected if it
is confidential.  Please describe the means provided under the law of the Slovak Republic forprotecting such information and cite the legal authority providing for such protection, if thosemeans differ from those described in answer to question 14.
See reply to question 14 above.
17. Article 43.2 provides that, in the event a party refuses to provide information ordered
by the judicial or administrative officials, those officials may be authorized to makepreliminary and final determinations adverse to that party.  Please describe what sanctionsmay be imposed on a party that refused to provide ordered information and under whatcircumstances those sanctions are imposed, citing the legal authority for those sanctions.
See reply to question 14 above.
18. Article 44.1 requires that judicial and administrative officials be able to enjoin or
otherwise prevent infringing activity by a party, including by preventing the entry ofinfringing goods into the channels of commerce in their jurisdiction.  Please describe authorityof the judges and administrative officials identified in question 1 to order parties to stopinfringements and to prevent infringing goods from entering the channels of commerce in theirjurisdiction immediately after clearance of such goods through customs.  In addition, pleasecite the legal authorities authorizing such actions.
The decision concerning these questions is the task of the courts, in this particular case
county courts as courts of the first instance.  The court's decision has to correspond with e.g. theright of the trademark holder, pursuant to Sections 25 and 26 of the Act on TrademarksNo. 55/1997, Digest of Laws.  On that basis the court is able to forbid a certain infringing actionagainst the rights of a trademark holder and it is also authorised to decide concerning adequateremedies, including disposal of goods outside commercial channels, etc.  Thus in the case oftrademarks, the cited provisions of Sections 25 and 26 are applied, together with the authority ofcourts, as established in Section 80, letter b) and c) of the Slovak Code of Civil Procedure.IP/Q4/SVK/1
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19. Article 44.2 provides an exception to the requirement in paragraph 1 for government
use or use by third parties authorized by the government, limiting the remedy forinfringement to payment of adequate remuneration as provided in Article 31(h).  Pleasedescribe any such limitations on remedies in the laws of the Slovak Republic and cite the legalauthorities providing for those limitations.
The use of the subject of intellectual property rights without permission of the right holder
in the Slovak Republic by third parties is made possible by law only in the case of patents, namelyby compulsory licence.  This is established by Section 20 of Act No. 527/1990, Digest of Laws.  Acompulsory licence can be granted by the Slovak Industrial Property Office if the patent holder doesnot use his or her invention or uses it deficiently without substantial reasons.  A compulsory licencecan also be granted if there is a threat to the public interest.  In accordance with the wording ofparagraph 2, the right of the patent owner to receive a proper remuneration for a compulsorylicence, consisting of the licence price, is not affected.
20. Article 45.1 requires that judicial and administrative officials be able to order an
infringer to pay the right holder damages adequate to compensate for the injury caused by theinfringement.  Please describe the authority of the judges and administrative officialsidentified in question 1 to order a party found to be infringing to pay the right holder damagesadequate to compensate for the injury caused by the infringement.  Please explain the factorsconsidered in establishing the amount of the compensation and cite the legal authoritiesauthorizing such compensation orders.
Damages payment or adequate compensation for non-proprietary injury concerning the
subject of industrial property falls within the jurisdiction of county courts.  The same applies tocopyright and related rights.  Damage payment in general is regulated by Section 420 and thefollowing provisions of the Civil Code.  Certain specialized laws also relate to this regulation, likefor example Section 26 of the Act on Trademarks, which aside from damages of payment alsoestablishes the right to adequate compensation for non-proprietary injury, granting that thiscompensation can also be submitted in the form of financial remuneration.  In the case of inventionsand industrial designs, the relevant regulations are stated by Section 75 of Act No. 527/1990,Digest of Laws.  Above all the injured party has the obligations to substantiate his or her claim fordamage, calculate the payment and state who is responsible for the injury.  Here it is necessary tomention that in the Slovak Republic there has been a system of authorised experts functioning for along time, granting that these experts are called to provide their expert’s opinion in certain specificareas.
21. Article 45.2 requires that judges and administrative officials be authorized to order
payment of a right holder's expenses, including legal fees.  Please describe the authority of thejudges and administrative officials identified in question 1 to order payment of right holders’expenses, the circumstances under which such an order will be given, the factors considered inestablishing the expenses, and cite the legal authorities authorizing such payments.
The court will decide on the right to compensation for legal fees along with its decision on
the merits.  The right to legal fees payment is regulated by Section 137 and following of the SlovakCode of Civil Procedure.  Pursuant to Section 142 of the Slovak Code of Civil Procedure, the partywith full success in the action, will be granted by the court compensation of all legal fees necessaryto enforce the law or to defend the law efficiently against the party who was not successful.  In the
case of partial success, the court will distribute the payments appropriately or will decide, that the
parties are not entitled to compensation of legal fees.  The successful party is thus able to enforceIP/Q4/SVK/1
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the right to compensation of all fees that were demonstrably used to gain effective law enforcement
or defense, against the opposing party.  These fees include also personal expenses, expenses forexpert opinions, attorney’s charges, legal fees, and so on.  An analogous regulation can be foundalso in the Act on Administrative Proceedings.
22. Article 46 requires that judges and administrative officials be authorized to order, in
certain circumstances, other remedies, including disposal of goods outside commercialchannels or destruction of goods and destruction of materials and implements the predominantuse of which is the creation of infringing goods.  Please describe the additional remediesavailable under the laws of the Slovak Republic, the circumstances in which such authoritywill be exercised, the factors considered in determining the nature of the remedies provided,and cite the legal authorities providing for such remedies.
There are no legal or administrative proceedings of enforcement of rights against infringed
goods other than those already described in earlier answers that would be established by the law ofthe Slovak Republic.  It is necessary to mention that destruction of materials or goods is not legallyestablished at present and competent bodies would resort to it only in case of criminal responsibilityand subsequent penalty consisting of forfeiture or seizure of goods.  However, a specific lawrelating to border measures is under consideration.
23. Article 47 provides that WTO Members may authorize judges and administrative
officials to order infringers to identify for right holders third parties involved in theproduction and distribution of infringing goods or services and their channels of distribution.Please describe any authority judges and administrative officials have under the laws of theSlovak Republic to order infringers to identify for right holders third parties involved in theproduction and distribution of infringing goods or services and their channels of distributionand describe the circumstances in which this authority would be exercised.  Please cite thelegal authorities providing for such remedies.
The right resulting from Article 47 of the TRIPS Agreement is established by Section 25,
paragraph 2 of the Act on Trademarks, No. 55/1997, Digest of Laws.  The right of informationfrom everyone who distributes or intends to distribute infringed goods, can be enforced by the rightholder by legal action;  the only condition is that the action has to be filed and the right to theparticular trademark has to be proved.  In case the third party does not respect the decision of thecourt, the court is able to fine the third party as a part of execution of the decision.  Subsequently alegal action for the criminal offence of interfering with the sentence can be filed.
24. Article 48.2 permits WTO Members to exempt public authorities and officials from
liability from remedies only where their actions were taken or intended in good faith incarrying out their responsibilities under the law.  Please explain any exemption providedpublic authorities and officials from liability for abuse of enforcement procedures, describe thecircumstances in which such limitations would not apply, and cite the legal authoritiesgranting such exemptions.
This question has already been answered in the answer to question 4.  The legal liability of
the State for the injury caused by unlawful legal decision or by a wrongful administrativeprocedures, is not limited by the fact that the body in question or its representatives took actions ingood faith.  What is decisive is whether there occurred any unlawful decision or wrongful
administrative procedure and whether any harm has been caused.IP/Q4/SVK/1
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Provisional measures
25. Articles 50.1 and 50.8 require that judicial and administrative authorities have the
authority to order prompt and effective provisional remedies to prevent an infringement ofany intellectual property right.  With respect to each intellectual property right identified inArticle 1.2 of the TRIPS Agreement, please identify the provisional measures available toprotect intellectual property rights.  Please cite the relevant legal authority establishing thoseprovisional remedies.
Proceedings designated as provisional measures are regulated by Section 74 and following
of the Slovak Code of Civil Procedure.  The enforcement of provisional measures was described inanswer to question 1.  Provisional measures can be ordered by the relevant legal authority at the suitof the affected person.
26. Articles 50.1 and 50.8 require that judicial and administrative authorities have the
authority to order prompt and effective provisional remedies to preserve relevant evidence inregard to an alleged infringement.  Please identify the provisional measures available topreserve relevant evidence in regard to an alleged infringement and cite the relevant legalauthority.
Pursuant to Section 78 of the Slovak Code of Civil Procedure, the court can preserve
relevant evidence at the suit, before the initiation of the proceeding on the merits of the case, ifthere is a risk that this evidence could not be provided later, or could be provided only with greatdifficulty.  The evidence in question is then preserved by the court competent to proceed on themerits, or by the circuit court in the circuit where the evidence is endangered.  Preservation ofevidence is effected by the judge in manners set for presenting evidence in legal procedures.
27. Articles 50.2 and 50.8 require Members to authorize judicial and administrative
authorities to adopt provisional measures inaudita altera parte .  With respect to each
intellectual property right identified in Article 1.2 of the TRIPS Agreement, please describebriefly the circumstances in which the judicial and administrative authorities are empoweredto adopt provisional measures inaudita altera parte  and cite the relevant legal authority.
This question applies to the already-mentioned notion of provisional measures, ordered by
the court at the suit, and to be decided by the court until up to 30 days since the filing of action withthe competent court authorised to proceed on the merits of the case.  Provisional measures can beordered if it is necessary to regulate the terms of the parties temporarily, or if there is a risk ofenforcement of the court decision being endangered.
28. Articles 50.2 and 50.8 require that judicial authorities and administrative bodies be
authorized to grant provisional remedies when a delay is likely to cause "irreparable harm" tothe right holder.  Please describe briefly what is required by the authorities identified inanswers to questions 25, 26 and 27 to establish "irreparable harm" to the right holder.
The legal regulation of provisional measures is considerably liberal and that is why the
applicant is not obliged to substantiate the threat of irreparable harm.  It is enough for the applicantto affirm with sufficient credibility, with respect to circumstances, that temporary regulation of theterms between the parties is necessary, or that enforcement of a later decision on the merits would
be difficult or wholly impossible.  The judge is able to employ a considerable range of judicialIP/Q4/SVK/1
Page 35
discretion in such a case and is not bound by the narrow limits of enforcement of provisional
measures.
29. Articles 50.2 and 50.8 also require that judicial authorities and administrative bodies
be authorized to grant provisional remedies when there is a "demonstrable risk of evidencebeing destroyed".  Please describe briefly what factors are considered by the competentauthorities in determining when there is a "demonstrable risk of evidence being destroyed".
In cases of provisional preservation of evidence (see answer to question 26) the regulation is
liberal as well.  It is not necessary to provide a demonstrable risk of evidence being destroyed, it issufficient to demonstrate the cause of fear, that evidence could not be provided later at all, or couldonly be provided with great difficulty.  The judge is able to employ a considerable range of judicialdiscretion in this case as well.  It would be counter-productive to describe the criteria for thedecision concerning the preservation of evidence, since the decision in question is in each and everyparticular case unique from the point of view of the merits.
30. Articles 50.3 and 50.8 require that judicial and administrative authorities be
authorized to require an applicant to provide evidence to establish with a sufficient degree ofcertainty that the applicant is the right holder and that infringement has occurred or isimminent.  With respect to each intellectual property right defined in Article 1.2 of the TRIPSAgreement, please describe the evidence required by right holders to establish ownership.
In the case of industrial property the evidence is relatively simple, because the owner can
provide the deed issued by the Slovak Industrial Property Office confirming that he or she is theright holder.  In the case of copyright and related rights the situation is a little more complicated,since in a situation where copyright is questionable, the decision has to be made by the court after arequest to establish authorship is submitted.
31. Articles 50.3 and 50.8 require that judicial and administrative authorities be
authorized to provide a security or equivalent assurance to protect the defendant.  Withrespect to each intellectual property right identified in Article 1.2 of the TRIPS Agreement,please cite the legal authority establishing a security or equivalent assurance.
The question of the manner of substantiating a right has already been answered.  The
specialised legal regulation so far does not allow the court or another authority to order theapplicant to provide sufficient security in accordance with Article 50.3 of the TRIPS Agreement.
32. Article 50.4 requires that parties be notified when provisional measures have been
adopted inaudita altera parte .  Please describe briefly the procedures followed by each
authority able to adopt such measures for notifying affected parties and state the time withinwhich such notice must take place.
Provisional measures are enforceable since the day of their delivery in written form to the
parties. i.e., they can be enforced no sooner than they are delivered to the obliged person.  Thecourt usually sends the opposing party a motion to adopt provisional measures, including a requestto make a statement concerning the motion, within a set time period.  This means that the party, andprimarily the obliged person, is notified when the motion to adopt provisional measures is filed,even before their enforcement is initiated.IP/Q4/SVK/1
Page 36
33. Article 50.4 also requires that defendants be afforded a review process to determine
whether provisional measures should be modified, confirmed, or revoked.  Please describebriefly the procedures a defendant must follow to initiate review proceedings in each of theauthorities able to adopt such measures and identify the period within which such proceedingsmust be initiated.
A party is able to appeal against the decision to adopt provisional measures within 15 days
since the delivery of the decision in written form.  The appellate court after hearing the parties andtheir statements is authorised to confirm, modify or revoke the motion.  The proceedings in thiscase are very simple as well, since it is sufficient to propose or directly present the evidence whichputs in doubt the reasonableness of the motion, or directly disproves it.  Nevertheless, the decisionabout powers and duties will be made pending du e process of law, since the effectiveness of
provisional measures is strictly bound by the duty to file a due action in rem .
34. Article 50.5 requires that competent authorities be authorized to require applicants to
supply other information necessary for the identification of goods concerned by the authoritythat will execute the provisional measures.  Please describe briefly what other information maybe required by the authorities and cite the legal authority establishing the basis for thissupplemental information.
There is no need for specific legal regulation, in accordance with Article 50.5 of the TRIPS
Agreement, since the applicant's duty is to submit all necessary or required evidence.
35. Articles 50.6 and 50.8 provide that if proceedings leading to a decision on the merits
are not initiated within a reasonable time, provisional remedies granted by competentauthorities shall be revoked or otherwise cease to have effect, at the request of the defendant.Please identify the relevant provisions in the law of the Slovak Republic authorizing therevocation or cessation of provisional measures if review proceedings are not initiated within areasonable time and specify what constitutes a "reasonable time period" to initiateproceedings.
Pursuant to Section 76, paragraph 3 of the Slovak Code of Civil Procedure, the court sets a
time-limit on the effectiveness of provisional measures, or binds their effectiveness by filing aproper action in rem  within an assigned time period, usually of one month, stating that the
effectiveness of provisional measures ceases to exist if the action is not filed within the periodassigned, or by a valid decision in rem .  The period assigned to filing an action depends on the
nature of the court and is usually related also to the range and complexity of the issue.
36. Articles 50.7 and 50.8 provide that judicial and administrative authorities shall have
the authority to order the applicant to provide the defendant appropriate compensation forany injury caused by the adoption of provisional measures when said measures are revoked,have lapsed, or when it has been determined that there has been no infringement or threat ofinfringement.  Please describe how the competent authorities determine "appropriatecompensation".
The legal regulation does not include the notion of appropriate compensation.
Compensation for injury can be established only by means of claim for damage.  This, however, ispossible only in case the applicant acted unlawfully or contra bonos mores , or in case he or she was
engaged in unfair competition invol ving discrediting, in accordance with the wording of Section 50
of the Commercial Code.  By discrediting is to be understood any action through which aIP/Q4/SVK/1
Page 37
competitor provides or spreads false information about the situation, products and achievements of
another competitor, if the information is able to cause any injury to another competitor.  In case theaction of the applicant could not be found unlawful or contra bonos mores , the enforcement of
compensation would be difficult, since no damage in the legal sense occurred.  In this particularcase the law of the Slovak Republic does not correspond sufficiently with the TRIPS Agreement.
Special requirements related to border measures
37. Article 51 of the TRIPS Agreement requires that countries adopt procedures that
enable right holders to request suspension of the importation of counterfeit trademark goodsand pirated copyright works.  Please identify the competent authority in the Slovak Republicauthorized to accept applications for a request to suspend release of suspected infringing goodsand cite the relevant law or regulation governing such authority.
The rights of the right holder, in accordance with the wording of Article 51 of the TRIPS
Agreement, are currently not addressed by the law in the Slovak Republic, however a specific newregulation addressing this issue is under consideration.
38. Please describe the procedures a right holder must follow to obtain border protection
by the competent authorities, e.g., if there is a formal application that must be submitted tothe competent authority, judicial or administrative, and the information required in therequest for suspension and cite the law or regulations providing such procedures.
See reply to question 37 above.
39. Please explain whether procedures, permissible under Article 51 of the TRIPS
Agreement, are available to stop the export of goods suspected of infringing copyright and/ortrademarks.
See reply to question 37 above.
40. Article 52 of the TRIPS Agreement requires that right holders wishing to stop
importation of counterfeit trademark goods or pirated copyright works present evidence to thecompetent authorities that there is prima facie  infringement of their trademark or copyright.
Please explain what evidence will constitute prima facie  infringement in the Slovak Republic.
See reply to question 37 above.
41. Article 52 also requires that the right holder provide a "sufficiently detailed description
of the goods" to be stopped.  Please explain what is required of the right holder in the SlovakRepublic for a description to be "sufficiently detailed".
See reply to question 37 above.IP/Q4/SVK/1
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42. Article 52 requires that the competent authorities notify the right holder that his
application is accepted within a reasonable time.  Please explain within what period of time thecompetent authority responds to a request for suspension of release of goods and, if theapplication is accepted, the length of time during which enforcement action will be taken.
Although the right holder is not able to enter a proper cause for trial, pursuant to Section 60
of the Act on Customs No. 180/1996 by course of government regulation no. 150/1958, Digest ofLaws, in accordance with the wording of later regulations, his or her suggestion of the procedurehas to be accepted as a grievance.  Pursuant to Section 6, paragraphs 3, 4 and 5 of the regulation,the grievance will be decided on by the competent authority within ten days.  If it is not possible,the acceptance of the grievance has to be confirmed within five days.  In exceptional cases only asuperior authority is able to prolong this time period up to ten days.  Pursuant to Section 11 of theregulation, the applicant has to be notified within the above-mentioned time periods, even in casehis or her application was unjustified.
43. Article 53.1 requires that the competent authorities have the authority to secure from
an applicant a security or equivalent assurance sufficient to protect a defendant and to preventabuse.  Please verify that the competent authorities identified above are empowered to requiresecurity or equivalent assurance and provide citations to the provisions of law or regulationthat grant them that authority.
See reply to question 37 above.
44. Article 53.2 provides that the owner, importer, or consignee of goods involving
industrial designs, patents, layout-designs or undisclosed information that have beensuspended by customs authorities should be able, in certain circumstances, to have such goodsreleased on payment of security sufficient to protect the right holder from infringement.Please identify what forms of intellectual property, if any, are subject to provisions of Article53.2 and cite to the relevant provisions of law or regulations.
See reply to question 37 above.
45. Article 54 requires that the importer and the applicant be notified promptly of the
suspension or release of goods.  Please specify the period within which the competent authorityis to issue a notice that the release of goods has been suspended.
See reply to question 37 above.
46. Article 55 makes it clear that the right holder applying for suspension of infringing
goods must initiate a proceeding on the merits in an appropriate forum within a reasonableperiod of time or the goods will be released .  Please identify the fora in which an
applicant/party may initiate proceedings on the merits that will allow customs authorities tohold the goods beyond ten working days.
See reply to question 37 above.IP/Q4/SVK/1
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47. Article 55 provides that a review is to take place within a reasonable time at the
request of the defending party to determine if the suspension measures should be modified,revoked or confirmed pending the outcome of the proceeding on the merits.  Please identifythe forum that is authorized to conduct such a review and describe the procedure and cite theapplicable law or regulations.
See reply to question 37 above.
48. Article 56 requires that the authorities be able to require the applicant to compensate
the defending party for any injury caused if the detention of goods was unfounded.  Pleaseidentify the authorities that can order the applicant to pay the importer, consignee or ownercompensation for injury caused by wrongful detention or through the detention of goodsreleased pursuant to Article 55 and cite to the applicable law or regulations.
Compensation for injury is decided on by the competent court, under Section 420 and the
following provisions of the Civil Code.  See answer to question 20, which applies to this case aswell.
49. Article 57 requires that the competent authorities be able to authorize the right holder
to inspect the detained goods in order to substantiate the claims.  Please explain how rightholders are provided an opportunity to inspect suspect goods that have been detained bycustoms authorities.
The right of inspection is not explicitly granted, but in case of proceedings ex officio,
pursuant to Section 60 of the Customs Act, inspection by the right holder is usually a necessarycomponent of inward clearing.
50. Article 57 also requires that, where the decision on the merits favours the right holder,
the competent authorities also may be given authority to give the right holder informationregarding the importer, consignee or consignor.  If competent authorities in the SlovakRepublic can provide information regarding the importer, consignee or consignor to the rightholder, please explain how information regarding names and addresses of consignors,importers and consignees and quantities of goods are provided to the applicant after a positivedecision of infringement is made, e.g., authorities automatically providing information or bysubmission of a written request from the right holder, etc.  Please cite to the law or regulationsproviding such authority.
The right to information pursuant to Section 25, paragraph 2 of the Act on Trademarks
No. 55/1997, Digest of Laws (see answer to question 23) may be applied to State authorities in thecontext of Section 60 of the Customs Act.
51. Article 58 specifies procedures to be followed where the competent authorities can act
ex officio.  Please explain whether the competent authorities in the Slovak Republic areempowered to act ex officio and, if so, please identify the intellectual property areas subject toex officio action.
Customs authorities are empowered to act ex officio by Section 60 of the Customs Act, in
relation to the subjects of intellectual property rights.  The regulation thus covers the complete
range of rights.IP/Q4/SVK/1
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52. Article 59 identifies the remedies that are to be available, including destruction or
disposal of infringing goods outside the stream of commerce.  Please explain what the law inthe Slovak Republic permits regarding the disposition of infringing goods, i.e., does the lawallow for destruction, disposal or both.  Please cite to the law or regulations providing suchauthority.
Rights of the holder by course of Article 51 are established especially by Section 25,
paragraph 1 and Section 26 of the Act on Trademarks.  Nevertheless, the law of the SlovakRepublic does not allow destruction of goods.  The court is empowered to decide pursuant toSection 9 of the Slovak Code of Civil Procedure.
53. Please identify:
(a) the competent authority that decides the disposition of the goods, i.e., whether
the goods will be destroyed or disposed of outside the stream of commerce; and
(b) the competent authority that carries out the destruction or disposal of the
goods.
See reply to question 52 above.
54. Article 60 permits Members to exclude from the provisions for border enforcement
small quantities of goods of a non-commercial nature carried by passengers or sent in smallconsignments.  Please describe what constitutes a de minimis  import that is excluded from the
border measures under the law of the Slovak Republic.
Article 60 of the TRIPS Agreement applies to Section 2, letter g) of the Act on Tariffs
No. 180/1996, Digest of Laws, which establishes the notion of "goods of a non-commercialnature".  Goods of a non-commercial nature are to be understood by occasional import whichaccording to its type and amount is meant only for the needs of a passenger, members of his or herhousehold or for a donee.
Criminal procedures
55. Article 61 of the TRIPS Agreement requires that Members have criminal procedures
and penalties, including imprisonment and/or monetary fines sufficient to act as a deterrent,at least for cases of wilful trademark counterfeiting and copyright infringement on acommercial scale.  Please describe the provisions in the law of the Slovak Republic that fulfilthat obligation and provide legal citations.
The required statistical data is not available directly in the Office.  The Office has asked the
Ministry of Justice and the Central Customs Administration for the provision of the above-mentioned information.
In order to answer the question regarding the criminal aspects of intellectual property
protection it would be best to quote the concrete provisions of the Code of Criminal Procedure,Sections 150 through 152.IP/Q4/SVK/1
Page 41
Section 150 - Infringement of the rights to a trademark, trade name and protected
appellation of origin
(1) The person who has put on the market products or provided services marked with a
mark identical to a trademark, the exclusive right for which belongs to anotherperson, or a sign confusingly similar to this trademark, is punished byimprisonment for the period of one year, or by a monetary fine, or forfeiture of athing.
(2) Equal punishment is imposed on a person who in order to achieve economic benefit:
(a) unlawfully uses a trade name or whatever sign confusingly similar with this
name, or
(b) puts into circulation products unlawfully marked with an appellation of
origin to which the exclusive right belongs to another person, or with anappellation of origin confusingly similar.
Section 151 - Infringement of industrial rights
The person who unlawfully infringes the right to a protected invention, industrial design,
utility model or topography of semiconductor products is punished by imprisonment for the
period of up to three years, or a monetary fine.
Section 152 - Infringement of copyright
(1) The person who unlawfully disposes with a work which is the subject-matter of the
protection according to the copyright, or with a performance of a performing artist,with a sound or visual recording, with a broadcast or television programme whichare the subject-matter of the right similar to the copyright, in the manner whichbelongs to the author, performing artist, maker of a sound or visual recording, abroadcast or television organisation or other holder of this right, or the person whoinfringes the above-mentioned rights in some other manner, is punished byimprisonment for the period of up to two years, or by a monetary fine, or byforfeiture of a thing.
(2) The perpetrator is punished by imprisonment for a period from six months up to
five years, or by a monetary fine, of forfeiture of a thing, if:
(a) this person gains by the action stated in paragraph 1 considerable benefit, or
(b) this person commits an act of a large scope.
When considering unlawful actions in terms of their intensity and thus establishing a
criminal act it should be stressed that it is a matter for the judge’s discretion and before him that ofthe prosecutor.  As for Section 150 the condition is the release goods into free circulation, or the
release of a service with a direct unlawful use of a protected sign.  Experience which could begeneralised, above all by the judiciary, has not yet been gained in the Slovak Republic.IP/Q4/SVK/1
Page 42
Second part
In any case the determination of the amount of damage is a matter for the plaintiff.  In case
the amount of damage is adequately and reliably justified and proved the court has the grounds to
adjudicate on the claimed damage.  In cases where the right holder suffers material loss which does
not have the character of damage from the legal point of view, as it was not caused by an illegal
action, or in case of the occurrence of non-material loss, the court can assign the right to adequate
satisfaction to an injured party which can also be monetary performance.  In such case the amount of
monetary equivalent representing the satisfaction is determined in the judge’s discretion which is
obviously based on the submitted request and, although it is not an objectively established fact but thefact modelled on the basis of a discretion, it must have a rational basis.
We consider the above-mentioned facts answer the question as to what would be regarded as
expenses of the right holder which have to be reimbursed pursuant to Article 45.1.
A party to a proceeding who is successful, or partly successful, can be adjudicated the right
to the compensation for costs of the proceedings to the extent of his success.  These include apartfrom legal fees, attorney’s fees and also other fees which were provable and purposefully expendedin relation to the enforcement of the right in court.  The reimbursement of attorney’s fees isobjectively calculated according to the tariffs given by the Decree of the Ministry of Justicedetermining the remuneration of attorneys for individual acts according to their kind, amount of
claim and number.
As for the implementation of Article 45.2, second sentence of the TRIPS Agreement,
according to our opinion it is included in Section 26 (3) of the Law on Trademarks No. 55/1997Coll., which adjudicates the right to the compensation for damage, or the right to adequatesatisfaction, which can also be monetary performance regardless of whether the infringer infringedthe rights of the right holder and caused, knowingly or unknowingly, damage or other loss.
It is necessary to add, however, that the possibility of imposing seizure and forfeiture in
criminal proceedings leaves open the question how such goods should be handled after.  It goeswithout saying, that if such goods cannot be sold, naturally they would be destroyed.
The sufficiency of penalties is a subjective issue.  In comparison with the sentencing
guidelines concerning economic criminality the established penalties and their range seem to besufficient from the point of view of both sanction and prevention.
56. Article 61 also requires that remedies in appropriate cases include the seizure,
forfeiture and destruction of infringing goods and any materials and implements thepredominant use of which has been the commission of the offence.  Please explain theprovisions in the law of the Slovak Republic that provide for such remedies, describe thecircumstances in which those remedies would be imposed and provide legal citations.
See reply to question 55 above.
57. Article 61 also indicates that Members may provide for criminal procedures and
penalties in cases of wilful infringement of other forms of intellectual property.  Pleasedescribe any provisions in the law of the Slovak Republic that provide for such procedures andremedies and provide legal citations.
See reply to question 55 above.IP/Q4/SVK/1
Page 43
58. Article 61 requires that criminal penalties be sufficient to provide a deterrent at least
for wilful trademark counterfeiting and copyright piracy.  Please explain how the penaltiesprovided under the laws of the Slovak Republic comply with that obligation.
See reply to question 55 above.
[Follow-up questions from the US]1. Please provide statistical information related to civil copyright, trademark,
geographical indication, industrial design, patent, integrated circuit layout-design, and tradesecret enforcement for each of the years 1996 and 1997, including the number of cases filed;injunctions issued;  infringing products seized;  infringing equipment seized;  cases resolved(including settlement);  and the amount of damages awarded.
 Case Year The final number of
accomplished casesThe average duration
of the action/in
months
Infringement of copyright 1994
1995199643
29107.9
9.8
10.2
 Other copyright cases 1994
19951996140
93288.0
8.1
12.3
 The rights of inventors 1994
199519967
4917.1
21.019.7
The rights on rationalizationproposals and industrial designs1994
1995199641
381519.3
21.121.9
2. Please provide statistical information related to criminal enforcement in the area ofcopyright piracy and trademark infringement for each of the years 1996 and 1997, includingthe number of raids, prosecutions, convictions, and the amount of fines and/or jail terms(including whether the fines were paid and whether the jail term was actually served or wassuspended) and any other information establishing that your criminal system operateseffectively to deter copyright piracy and trademark counterfeiting.IP/Q4/SVK/1
Page 44
According to The final number of condemned persons
1994 1995 1996
 § 150 (2)
trade name and appellation of origin00 0
§ 151
patents and industrial design11 2
§ 152
copyright22 28 25
3. With respect to the Slovak Republic's answer to U.S. questions 37 to 41, please
describe the time frame the Government of the Slovak Republic expects for the adoption of theregulation discussed therein.
Preparation of the special regulation on border measures relating to the protection of
intellectual property rights is expected to begin in the year 1998 with the aim to finish the legislativeprocess and to adopt this law in the following year.
4. With respect to the Slovak Republic's answer  to question 20 of the Checklist of Issues
on Enforcement
4, please describe the time frame the Government of the Slovak Republic
expects for the adoption of the new Penal Code discussed therein.
The recodification of the Penal Code is in the final stage of the legislative process.  It is
expected to be adopted before the end of this year, or  in the first half of the next year at the latest.
                                                     
4  Document IP/N/6/SVK/1IP/Q4/SVK/1
Page 45
ANNEX
ADMINISTRATIVE FEES CONCERNING
INDUSTRIAL PROPERTY RIGHTS
(EXTRACT FROM THE LAW NO.145/1995 OF THE COLL.)
Item 166
a) Issue of a copy, extract from the Register,
document or official document, for each page    100 Sk
b) Filing an application for proving of professional capability
by a attorney or a commercial lawyer and performing
of an expert examination by an applicant for entry into
the Register of Patent Attorneys 1 500 Sk
Item 167
a) Filing a request for
1. excusing failure to comply with a period    1 000 Sk
2. issuing of a certificate of priority right, for each certificate    200 Sk
b) The appeal against the decision of the Industrial Property Office
of the Slovak Republic (further as "the Office") 2 500 Sk
Notice
The fee paid according to the letter b) of this item  will be refund in case of full complying with the
appeal.IP/Q4/SVK/1
Page 46
INVENTIONS
Item 168
a) Filing an application for an invention
l. exclusively by an author/s    800 Sk2. by any other applicant 1 600 Sk
b) Filing a request for
1. publication of an application for an invention prior to a period
laid down by the Law    600 Sk
2. registration of assignment or transfer of an application for
an invention to another applicant or of assignmentor transfer of a patent to the owner    800 Sk
3. registration of another author or applicant for an invention or
another owner of a patent    300 Sk
4. registration of change in name, surname or address,
tradename, name or the seat of an applicant for or author of
an invention or owner of a patent, for each application or patent    200 Sk
5. registration of change in a representative of an applicant
for an invention or owner of a patent    200 Sk
6. secrecy or cancellation of secrecy of an invention 1 000 Sk7. registration of a licence contract into the Register, for each patent   200 Sk8. granting a compulsory licence to an invention 5 000 Sk9. conversion of an author's certificate to a patent 2 000 Sk10. registration of any other decisive data in the Register    200 Sk
c) Filing a request for carrying out full examination of an application
for an invention
1. up to 10 patent claims 2 500 Sk
2. for any other patent claim    400 Sk
d) Issue of a Letters Patent
1. in the scope of up to 10 machine written pages or drawings 2 000 Sk2. for any other machine written page or drawing registration    200 SkIP/Q4/SVK/1
Page 47
Exemption
From the fee are exempted, pursuant to the letter b), point 2 of this item, the requests according to the
Law No. 92/1991 Coll. on conditions of assignment of assets of the state to other persons, as
amended.
Note
The fee according to the letter d) of this item, is payable within 2 months from the day of delivery of
appeal from the Office. If the records for issuing the Letters Patent are submitted on 3.5 inch diskette,
edited in the text editors T602, MS WORD, Win Text, Word Perfect, the fee is reduced to 2/3 of the
tariff.
Item 169
a) Filing a request for determination, whether a technical solution
falls within a scope of a patent    5 000 Sk
b) Filing a request for cancellation of a patent after the lapse of 6 months
since a decision on granting a patent came into effect .  1 000 Sk
Item 170
Maintaining a patent in validity
a) for the 3rd to the 5th year   5 000 Sk
b) for the 6th year   1 700 Sk
c) for the 7th year   2 100 Sk
d) for the 8th year   2 700 Ske) for the 9th year   3 500 Sk
f) for the 10th year   4 500 Sk
g) for the 11th year   5 500 Sk
h) for the 12th year   6 500 Sk
ch) for the 13th year   7 500 Ski) for the 14th year   8 500 Sk
j) for the 15th year   9 500 Sk
k) for the l6th year 11 000 Sk
l) for the 17th year 12 500 Sk
m) for the l8th year 14 000 Sk
n) for the l9th year 15 500 Sk
o) for the 20th year 17 000 Sk
Notes
1. The maintenance fee for 3
rd – 5th year is paid in amount specified by Law which is in force at
the time of granting patent. The decision on granting patent includes also the amount of fee. Themaintenance fees are paid in the amount specified by the valid Law in time of payment, without
invitation of the Office. If a payer paid a maintenance fee in advance, for a term when the period for
paying the fee starts to run when a new Law is already in force, he shall pay the fee in compliance
with the provisions as stated in the new Law.  If the payer pays the fee during next 6 months
according to point 4 of these Notes, there will be used the Law valid in the time of due date of the feein previous term of payment.IP/Q4/SVK/1
Page 48
2. a) The maintenance fee for patent for 3rd – 5th year is payable within 3 months at latest 
from the decision on granting patent came into force.
b) The fee for 6th and each following year of validity of patent is payable before the end
of previous year of validity of the patent.
3. If the period, presented in the point 2, letter b) , elapsed before the decision on granting patent
have entered into force then the fees are payable in the period specified  in the point 2, letter a) .
4. If the fee is not paid  within fixed period as specified in the points 2 and 3, it is possible to pay
it within next 6 months but in this case the fee is doubled.
5. If the patent is a subject of offer of licence, the owner shall pay only half maintenance fee.
Item 171
The maintaining in validity of author’s certificat e, according to §81, sub.1 of the Law No. 527/1990
Coll. on inventions, industrial designs and rationalisation proposals, is a subject of fees under the item170 .
Item 172
Acts of the Office connected with filing of an international application under
the Patent  Co-operation Treaty 1 600 SkIP/Q4/SVK/1
Page 49
UTILITY  MODELS
Item 173
a) Filing an application for a utility model
1. exclusively by an author/s    700 Sk2. by any other applicant 1 400 Sk
b) Filing a request for
1. postponement of entry of a utility model in the Register    500 Sk
2. registration of assignment or transfer of an application for a utility
to another applicant or of assignment or transfer of an utility model
to  another owner    800 Sk
3. registration of another author of or applicant for or owner of
an utility model    300 Sk
4. registration of change in name, surname or place of residence tradename,
name or headquarters of an applicant for or
author of or owner of an utility model, for each application
or registered utility model    200 Sk
5. registration of change in a representative of an applicant for
or owner of a utility model    200 Sk
6. registration of a licence contract in the Register,
for each utility model    200 Sk
7. granting a compulsory licence to a utility model 5 000 Sk
8. registration of any other decisive data in the Register    200 Sk
Exemption
From the fee, pursuant to the letter b), point 2 of this item, are exempted the requests according to the
Law No. 92/1991 Coll. on conditions of assignment of assets of the state to other persons, as
amended.
Item 174
a) Filing a request for determination, whether a technical solution falls
within a scope of a registered utility model 5 000 Sk
b) Filing a request for cancellation of a utility model from the Register    500 Sk
c) Procedure concerning cancellation of an utility model 2 500 SkIP/Q4/SVK/1
Page 50
Note
According to the letter c) of this item, the fee shall be drawn for the proceeding on proposal for the
cancellation, initiated by a statement of the owner of utility model. The fee is paid after the
proceeding, and payer is a person who has not been successful in the proceeding.  If the partial
success was achieved in the proceeding, the Office specifies the degree of success of participants.
Item 175
Filing a request for extension of validity of a utility model registration
a) for the first time for 3 years 3 000 Sk
b) for the second time for 3 years 6 000 Sk
Notes
1. If the utility model has entered in the Register of utility models after the expiration of the
validity of an utility model, the fee for extension of  validity is payable, without request of the owner
of utility model, within 2 months from issuin g of the certificate, based on written invitation,.
2. If the fee was not paid  within fixed period, it is possible to pay it within next 6 months but in
this case the fee is doubled.IP/Q4/SVK/1
Page 51
lNDUSTRIAL DESIGNS
Item 176
a) Filing an application for an industrial design
1. exclusively by an author/s
1.1. for one appearance of a product    600 Sk1.2. for any other appearance of a product comprised
in that application     100 Sk
2. by any other applicant
2.1. for one appearance of a product 1 200 Sk
2.2. for any other appearance of a product  comprised
in that application    200 Sk
b) Filing a request for
1. postponement of entry of an industri al design in the Register    500 Sk
2. registration of assignment or transfer of an application
for an industrial design to another applicant or of assignment
or  transfer of a patent to another owner    600 Sk
3. registration of another author of or applicant for
or owner of an industrial design    300 Sk
4. registration of change in name, surname or address, trade name,
name or the seat of an applicant for or author of or owner of an
industrial design, for each application or registered industrial design    200 Sk
5. registration of change in a representative of an applicant for
or owner of an industrial design    200 Sk
6. secrecy or cancellation of secrecy of an industrial design 1 000 Sk7. registration of a licence contract in the Register,
for each industrial design    200 Sk
8. registration of any other crucial data in the Register
of industrial designs    200 Sk
Exemption
From the fee, pursuant to the letter b), point 2 of this item, are exempted the requests according to the
Law No. 92/1991 Coll. on conditions of assignment of assets of the state to other persons, as
amended.IP/Q4/SVK/1
Page 52
Item 177
a) Filing a request for determination, whether an appearance of a product falls
within a scope of a registered industrial design 3 000 Sk
b) Filing a request for cancellation of an industrial design from the Register
l. for one appearance of a product    600 Sk2. for any other appearance of a product comprised
in an industrial design    100 Sk
Item 178
Filing a request for extension of validity of an industrial design registration
l. for the first time for 5 years 2 000 Sk
2. for the second time for 5 years 4 000 Sk
Notes
1. If an industrial design has entered in the Register of industrial designs after the expiration of
the validity of an industrial design, the fee for exte nsion of validity is payable, without request of the
owner of industrial design, within 2 months from i ssuing of the certificate, based on written invitation.
2. If the fee was not paid within fixed period, it is possible to pay it within next 6 months but in
this case the fee is doubled.IP/Q4/SVK/1
Page 53
TOPOGRAPHIES OF SEMICONDUCTOR PRODUCTS
Item 179
a) Filing an application for a topography of semiconductor product 5 000 Sk
b) Filing a request for:
1. registration of assignment or transfer of an application for a
topography of semiconductor product to another applicant or
of assignment or transfer of a topography of semiconductor
product to another owner    600 Sk
2. registration of change in name, surname or address, trade name,
name or the seat of an applicant for or author of or owner of
a topography of semiconductor product, for each application
or registered topography of semiconductor product    200 Sk
3. registration of change in a representative of an applicant for
or owner of a topography of semiconductor product    200 Sk
4. registration of a licence contract in the Register of  topographies
of semiconductor products    200 Sk
5. granting a compulsory licence to a topography of semiconductor
product 5 000 Sk
6. registration of any other crucial data in the Register of topographies
of semiconductor products    200 Sk
Exemption
From the fee, pursuant to the letter b), point 1 of this item, are exempted the requests according to the
Law No. 92/1991 Coll. on conditions of assignment of assets of the state to other persons, as
amended.
Item 180
Filing a request for cancellation of a topography from the Register of topographies
of semiconductor products 4 000 SkIP/Q4/SVK/1
Page 54
TRADEMARKS
Item 181
a) Filing an application for
1. an individual trademark up to 3 classes of goods and services  3 000 Sk2. a collective trademark up to 3 classes of goods and services  5 000 Sk3. an individual or collective trademark, for each class of goods
and services exceeding 3 classes     300 Sk
b) Filing a request for
1. registration of assignment or transfer of a trademark
to another applicant or of assignment or transfer of a rightto trademark to another owner     600 Sk
2. declaration of a trademark for famous  20 000 Sk3. registration of change in name, surname or address
trade name, name or the seat of an applicant for or owner
of a trademark, for each application or registered trademark     200 Sk
4. registration of change in a representative of an applicant
for or owner of a trademark     200 Sk
5. Registration of a licence contract in the Register of trademarks     500 Sk6. registration of restriction of list of goods and services,
change of a licence contract or a contract concerning application forand use of a collective trademark, change in a trademark     500  Sk
7. registration of any other crucial data in the Register
of trademarks     200 Sk
Exemption
From the fee, pursuant to the letter b), point 1 of this item, are exempted the requests according to the
Law No. 92/1991 Coll. on conditions of assignment of assets of the state to other persons, as
amended.
Item 182
a) Filing a request for cancellation of a trademark from the Register     600 Sk
b) Filing an opposition the registration of a mark in the Register of trademarks     500 SkIP/Q4/SVK/1
Page 55
Item 183
Filing a request for
a) renewal of an individual trademark registration 2 500 Skb) renewal of a collective trademark registration 3 000 Skc) renewal of registration of an individual trademark
filed after the lapse of the term  of protection
(within 6 months following this date at the latest) 3 500 Sk
d) renewal of registration of a collective trademark filed
after the lapse of the term of protection
(within 6 months following this date at the latest) 4 000 Sk
Item 184
Filing a request for
a) international registration of a trademark 1 500 Sk
b) renewal of  international registration of a trademark 1 500 Sk
c) territorial extension or restriction of international
registration of a trademark    800 Sk
d) restriction of list of goods and services of an internationally registered
trademark, registration of assignment  or transfer of an internationally
registered trademark, registration of change in name, surname or address,
tradename, name or the seat of an owner of an  internationally registered
trademark    500 SkIP/Q4/SVK/1
Page 56
APPELLATIONS OF ORIGIN
Item 185
a) Filing an application for an appellation of origin 2 000 Sk
b) Filing a request for
l. registration of another user of an appellation of origin 2 000 Sk2. registration of assignment or transfer of a registered
appellation of origin to another user    600 Sk
3. registration of change in name, surname or place of residence,
tradename, name or headquarters of an applicant for or user
of an appellation of origin    100 Sk
4. registration of change in a representative of an applicant for user of
an appellation of origin    200 Sk
5. registration of another crucial data in the Register  of an appellation
of origin    200 Sk
Exemption
From the fee, pursuant to the letter b), point 2 of this item, are exempted the requests according to the
Law No. 92/1991 Coll. on conditions of assignment of assets of the state to other persons, asamended.
Item 186
Filing a request for cancellation of registration of an appellation of origin 2 000 Sk
Item 187
Filing a request for international registration of an appellation of origin 1 000 Sk
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