RESTRICTEDWORLD TRADE
ORGANIZATIONIP/Q/HND/1
IP/Q2/HND/1
IP/Q3/HND/1
IP/Q4/HND/1
30 January 2002
(02-0468)
Council for Trade-Related Aspects
of Intellectual Property RightsOriginal:  Spanish
REVIEW OF LEGISLATION
HONDURAS1
This document reproduces the introductory statement made by the delegation of Honduras,
the questions addressed to it and the responses given in connection with the review of legislation
undertaken at the Council meeting held from 18 to 22 June 2001.2
_______________
I. INTRODUCTORY STATEMENT
In introducing the review of its domestic inte llectual property legislation, Honduras wishes
first of all to thank the WTO Secretariat for its support, and all the delegations that have expressed
interest in our domestic law by posing questions, to which we hope to provide satisfactory replies inthe course of these meetings.
A. 
BACKGROUND
Our legal system is grounded in the Romano-Germanic tradition which has as its key feature
the enactment of legislation prior to performance of the act.
Under this premise, the cornerstone of Hondu ran domestic law is the Constitution of the
Republic, Article 133 of which provides that "independent intellectual work and the fruits thereof
shall be the subject of protective legislation".
The laws and regulations governing the Honduran system in this regard were drawn up on the
basis of this precept.
For almost 100 years, since 1902, Honduras has protected intellectual property rights by
complying with constitutional provisions, acceding to various treaties and promulgating laws,
resulting in the establishment of the Industrial Property Registry Office.
The Convention on patents of invention was ratified in 1910.
The first Law on Marks and the Law on Patents were approved in 1919;  the latter contained
regulations governing the Law on Copyright.
                                                     
1 As regards laws and regulations relevant to the area under review and notified by Honduras under
Article 63.2 of the Agreement, reference is made to documents IP/N/1/HND/C/1, IP/N/1/HND/I/1 andIP/N/6/HND/1.
2 The minutes of the meeting have been circulated as document IP/C/M/32.IP/Q/HND/1, IP/Q2/HND/1,
IP/Q3/HND/1, IP/Q4/HND/1
Page 2
In 1935 Honduras acceded to the Inter-Ameri can Convention for Trademark and Commercial
Protection (Washington Convention).
The years 1946 and 1957 saw an overhaul of the Law on Marks and the Law on Patents in
order to bring them into line with the provisions of the treaties signed up to those dates.
In 1977, protection was extended to new elements such as trade names and service marks;
enhanced protection was provided in respect of the rehabilitation of marks and the registration thereof
solely for products included in the category indica ted by the applicant, in accordance with the Nice
Agreement concerning the International Classification of Goods and Services.
In 1983 Honduras signed the Agreement establishing the World Intellectual Property
Organization (WIPO).
In 1989 it became a party to the International Convention for the Protection of Performers,
Producers of Phonograms and Broa dcasting Organizations (Rome Convention) and the Convention
for the Protection of Producers of Phonograms Against Unauthorized Duplication of their
Phonograms.
In 1990 Honduras signed the Berne Convention for the Protection of Literary and Artistic
Works, in accordance with the Paris Act of 1971.
The Law on the intellectual property rights of producers of phonograms was enacted in 1991.In 1993, following examination of the TRIPS Agreement, which at that time was awaiting
finalization and signature in the Uruguay Round, two la ws compatible with its provisions were drafted
and approved:  the Industrial Property Law and the Law on Copyright and Related Rights.  The
Secretariat for Industry and Trade, the Directorate-General of Intellectual Property and the Office of
Copyright and Related Rights were established under those laws.
The year 1994 saw the signing of the Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual
Property Rights (TRIPS) and the Paris Conven tion for the Protection of Industrial Property
(1967 Stockholm Act).
We wish to place on record the fact that all the conventions and agreements referred to above
were duly ratified by the Honduran National Congress and thus have the force of law in the Republic.
Finally, in 2000 the Sovereign National Congress approved the new Industrial Property Law
and the Law on Copyright and Related Rights, which incorporate all the provisions of the TRIPS
Agreement, including measures relating to enfo rcement and civil, criminal and administrative
procedures.
B. 
LEGAL FRAMEWORK IN FORCE
Radical changes of major importance have been introduced in the area of intellectual property
since 2000, with continued adherence to the basic principle embodied in all the agreements resulting
from the Uruguay Round, namely non-discrimination.
The Law on Copyright and Related Rights protects all original creations in the literary and
artistic fields.  Computer programs and databases are included among these protectable works.
Among the rights accorded to the owners of such works, provision is made for the right of distribution
by sale, rental or any other means, and the right of communication of the work irrespective of the time
or place at which access to the work is obtained.  Owners of audiovisual works, computer programsIP/Q/HND/1, IP/Q2/HND/1,
IP/Q3/HND/1, IP/Q4/HND/1
Page 3
and works included in a phonogram benefit from a specific provision entitling them to authorize or
prohibit the commercial rental of such works.
In the field of related rights, performers, producers of phonograms and broadcasting
organizations are granted the rights referred to in Article 14 of the TRIPS Agreement, including
additional rights for the benefit of phonogram producers, namely the right of distribution by sale,
rental or any other means and the right to import copies of protected phonograms.
The amendments introduced in 2000 extended the term of protection for works and related
rights from fifty (50) to seventy-five (75) years;  a chapter governing collective management entities
was added in order to facilitate exercise of the right of communication accorded to authors andphonogram producers;  and definitions were established for the following infringements of protected
rights, among others:
- The reproduction or rental of copies of protected works and phonograms without
authorization from the right holder;
- the fixation, reproduction or retransmission of protected broadcasts, without
authorization from the broadcasting organizations;
- the sale, distribution, storage, import or export of copies of protected works and
phonograms;
- the manufacture or import, for sale or rental, of devices or means which permit or
facilitate reception of coded programmes, broadcast or communicated to the public in
any other way, by persons lacking authorization;  and
- the deletion or modification, without authorization, of any information relating to the
management of rights set out in electronic form, a provision which is found in the
new WIPO treaties.
Provision is also made for administrative, civil and criminal procedures for claims relating to
infringement of rights and payment of damages, with custodial sentences of up to six years being
established  in cases involving defined offences, and fines of between ten (10) and two hundred (200)
units of the minimum wage in cases involving administrative sanctions.
In the field of industrial property, provision is made for the patentability of all inventions, in
any field of technology, with protection accorded fo r a term of twenty (20) years, counted from the
date of submission of the request.  Protection is also granted for industrial designs and the following
distinctive signs:  marks, including well-known marks;  trade names, emblems and labels;  advertising
expressions and signs;  and geographical indications.
As a result of the amendments introduced in 2000:- The exceptions to patentability were reduced;- the term of protection for pharmaceutical products and agricultural chemical products
was made equivalent to the term of protection for other inventions;
- criteria were established for determining whether a mark is well-known;- the prescribed time-limit for cancellation of a mark owing to lack of use was
extended from one to three years;IP/Q/HND/1, IP/Q2/HND/1,
IP/Q3/HND/1, IP/Q4/HND/1
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- improvements were made to the judicial procedures governing complaints of
infringement of protected rights, with provision for flexible mechanisms to deal with
any request by legitimate right holders, including the possibility of requestingprecautionary measures to prevent aggravation of the infringement, guarantee the
outcome of proceedings or safeguard evidence.  Mention may be made of the
following examples of precautionary measures:  sequestration of illicit goods and of
the materials and implements for their manufacture;  seizure of goods in sufficient
quantity to guarantee the outcome of proceedings;  deposit or impoundment of goods,
books or documents related to the subject-matter of the dispute;  and prohibition on
performing acts or contracts relating to the goods in dispute;
- provision was also made for the possibility of initiating administrative proceedings to
sanction the infringements provided for;  and
- custodial criminal penalties were increased to six (6) years maximum.Honduran legislation entitles the right hold er to initiate any procedure before the
administrative authority, without prejudice to the initiation of proceedings in the civil and criminal
courts, which may be brought personally or through legal representatives.
With regard to the application of border measures of an administrative nature, a draft
regulation has been adopted on the procedure governing special requirements related to border
measures taken by the Executive Revenue Directorate, responsible for the national administration of
Customs, which in accordance with the provisions of the TRIPS Agreement, establishes all the
procedures contributing to the application of precautionary measures, with the possibility ofpreventing the import or export of goods infringing intellectual property rights;  the measures in
question may be requested in writing, using the services of a legal representative, or the right holder
may lodge an application with the Executive Revenue Directorate (Customs) to prevent entry into the
country, via the different customs offices, of goods infringing intellectual property rights.
Two draft laws are currently pending before the Sovereign National Congress.  They are the
Law on the protection of new plant varieties and the Law on the legal protection of layout-designs ofintegrated circuits.
In addition to the foregoing, the following trea ties administered by WIPO are currently being
considered for ratification:
- The 1996 WIPO Copyright Treaty (WCT);
- the WIPO Performances and Phonograms Treaty (WPPT) of the same year;  and- the Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT).The attention of all Members of this Organization should be drawn to an important provision
of the Honduran Constitution, which is that international conventions and treaties, once ratified by the
National Congress and published in the Official Journal ( La Gaceta ), automatically become part of
the domestic legal order.
The Constitution also provides that, in the even t of any inconsistency or conflict between the
provisions of a domestic law and an international treaty or convention, the latter shall prevail.IP/Q/HND/1, IP/Q2/HND/1,
IP/Q3/HND/1, IP/Q4/HND/1
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C. THE WORK OF THE INSTITUTIONS CONCERNED WITH THE ADMINISTRATION OF INTELLECTUAL
PROPERTY LEGISLATION
In its unceasing efforts to guarantee the full implementation and enforcement of the various
laws, agreements and conventions that constitute domestic intellectual property legislation, Honduras,with the assistance of national and international organizations and associations, has provided training
for the judicial, customs, taxation, police and administrative authorities of the institutions responsible
for applying the administrative, civil and criminal  procedures designed for the proper enforcement of
protected rights.  It has also modernized the inst itutions responsible for administering intellectual
property laws and has provided training for the staff of those institutions, in order to facilitate and
streamline registration formalities.
In addition, it has set up an Inter-Institutional Commission against Piracy, monitoring and
safeguard of intellectual property rights, which works in a coordinated manner on concrete steps to
combat piracy in Honduras.
The Commission is made up of liaison officers or permanent representatives of the following
institutions:
(a) Public Prosecutor's Office (body responsible for instituting criminal proceedings in
the event of infringement of intellectual property rights);
(b) Security Secretariat (body in charge of the police authorities which effect seizures of
counterfeit and pirated goods);
(c) Executive Revenue Directorate (body in charge of the Honduran customs offices);
(d) National Telecommunications Commission (body responsible for authorizing the
operation of open television companies and companies for the cable distribution of
programme-carrying satellite signals);
(e) Supreme Court of Justice (responsible for th e administration of justice in Honduras);
(f) Honduran Council for Private Enterprise (umbrella organization for businesses).
The ad hoc liaison groups or representatives include the following:
(a) Consumer Affairs Department (Fiscalía del Consumidor)
(b) Secretariat of Health
(c) Secretariat of Education
(d) Secretariat of Agriculture and Livestock
(e) Collective Management Associations
(f) Municipal Mayors' Offices
(g) Business Software Alliance
(h) International Federation of the Phonographic IndustryIP/Q/HND/1, IP/Q2/HND/1,
IP/Q3/HND/1, IP/Q4/HND/1
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(i) Video Association of Honduras (ASOCEVIH);
(j) Phonogram Producers' Association (APROFONO);
(k) Motion Picture Association (MPA).
Action taken by the Commission has resulted in the seizure of counterfeit goods and materials
and implements used for their production.
We trust that our presentation has been sufficiently extensive to demonstrate that Honduras
attaches great importance to the protection of intellectual property rights.  Moreover, our interest in
the topic can be seen from the delegation present here, which is made up of representatives of various
standing bodies represented on the Inter-Institutional Commission Against Piracy.
In conclusion, allow me to state that Hondura s, as a developing country with major economic
and social problems, has made strenuous efforts to ensure respect for the rights of all Members of this
Organization.  Our goal has always been to co mply with our international commitments, and this
morning we consider that we have succeeded in doin g so in the difficult field of intellectual property.
II. REPLIES TO THE QUESTIONS POSED BY CANADA
1. Please describe how the enforcement obligations (Articles 41-61 of the TRIPS
Agreement and throughout) have been implemented.
Articles 41 and 42
To ensure the enforcement of intellectual property rights, both the Industrial Property Law
and the Law on Copyright and Related Rights allow the right holder to bring an administrative or
legal action, whether civil or criminal, to protect his rights against infringement, or to prevent or halt
an infringement and avoid its consequences.
Civil proceedings follow the trial procedure laid down in the Code of Civil Procedure
(Articles 160 of the Industrial Property Law and 173 of the Law on Copyright and Related Rights),
without prejudice to the possibility for the parties in volved to resort to the corresponding action under
the administrative procedure.  In criminal cases, it is for the Public Prosecutor to prosecute the
infringer, provided that the holder or licensee of the infringed rights initiates the prosecution by filing
a complaint for violation directly with the Prosecu tor's Office or the competent courts (Article 152.1,
2 and 3 of the Code of Criminal Procedure).
Honduran legislation further provides for the possibility of requesting, even prior to  any of
the above actions, precautionary measures or orders to protect intellectual property rights, to prevent
infringement, or to obtain and preserve evidence (Articles 163 and 165 of the Industrial Property Lawand Articles 174 and 178 of the Law on Copyright and Related Rights).  Border measures suspending
importation or exportation of goods that injure or infringing the rights of the holder of an industrial
property right or copyright or related rights may also be ordered (Articles 165.4 of the Industrial
Property Law and 174.5 of the Law on Copyright and Related Rights).
Article 43
Neither the Industrial Property Law nor the Law on Copyright and Related Rights contains
any special provisions regarding the power of the j udicial authorities to order one of the parties to
proceedings to produce evidence in its possession.  However, this is covered by other provisionsIP/Q/HND/1, IP/Q2/HND/1,
IP/Q3/HND/1, IP/Q4/HND/1
Page 7
residually applicable to intellectual property such as the Law on Administrative Procedure and the
Code of Civil Procedure.
As regards the requirement that measures guaranteeing the protection of confidential
information must be taken in all cases where ev idence is produced, Honduran legislation contains
various provisions stipulating that the judicial authorities and administration officials shall abide by
this requirement in respect of information supplied under a guarantee of confidentiality, as an
exception to the general rule of public disclosure of administrative acts (Articles 111 and 222.3 of the
Courts (Organization and Competence) Law.
Likewise, although Article 174 of  the Code of Criminal Procedure and Articles 155 and 156
of the Code of Civil Procedure enunciate the principl e that acts and proceedings of the courts of the
Republic are public, they admit as exceptions to that principle cases where, by legal order or on
grounds of public morality or security, such acts and proceedings must be kept confidential.  Thus, the
aforementioned Articles empower the courts to declare, in very special cases and under their strict
responsibility, acts or proceedings confidential.
Article 44
Pursuant to Articles 163 and 165 of the I ndustrial Property Law and Articles 173 and 174 of
the Law on Copyright and Related Rights, the authorities may order, depending on the case andbearing in mind the need for proportionality in terms of the seriousness of the infringement, whatever
measures are required to ensure the cessation of the infringing acts and to prevent the consequences
and avoid a repetition thereof, including the pr ohibition of importation and exportation of goods or
materials and their disposal outside the channels of commerce.  According to express provisions of
both laws, in civil and criminal proceedings the courts may also order, as a precautionary measure, theimmediate cessation of the use, application and marketing of the infringing goods, or the measures
necessary to avoid continuation or repetition of the infringement (Articles 270 of the Code of Civil
Procedure and 55 of the Criminal Code).
Article 45
Articles 1351, 1357, 1360, 2236 and 2237 of the Civil Code and 191 of the Code of Civil
Procedure establish the general principle or rule that anyone causing harm or prejudice to another,
whether intentionally or by neglect or carelessness, is required to make good the act, except where it
can be demonstrated that the harm or prejudice was the result of inexcusable negligence or fault on
the part of the victim.  It is also stipulated that, in the event of an award of damages, the ruling shall
specify the net amount. If this is not possible, the ruling shall establish at least the basis fordetermining the assessment of the points at issue or for the fixing of the amount by experts.
Article 163.2 of the Industrial Property Law establishes that, in the case of infringement of
rights recognized under the Law, the competent au thority may be requested to order the award of
damages.  A similar rule is laid down in Article 175 of the Law on Copyright and Related Rights.
As to the matter of attorneys' fees, Articles 9 of the Code of Civil Procedure and 263 of the
Courts (Organization and Competence) Law sets out the general rule that each party to proceedings
shall be directly liable for costs in respect of actions it takes or requests.  On the other hand, the rule
also establishes that, in the event of an order to pa y costs, the losing party shall compensate the other
for all the necessary expenses it has caused.  Articles 192, 242, 243 and 244 of the Code of Civil
Procedure specify the general obligation for the court, in its final ruling on a case, to order the guilty
party to reimburse the other for the costs that the latter has incurred.IP/Q/HND/1, IP/Q2/HND/1,
IP/Q3/HND/1, IP/Q4/HND/1
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Article 46
The withdrawal of infringing goods from the channels of commerce may be ordered as a
definitive measure (in the judgment that closes the proceedings) or as a precautionary measure, asprovided for in Articles 163 and 165 of the Industrial Property Law and Articles 174 and 178 of the
Law on Copyright and Related Rights.  In conformity  with the above provisions, the goods resulting
from the infringement and the means or implemen ts used to commit the infringement shall be
destroyed.  Likewise, Article 169 of the Industria l Property Law provides that goods displaying
unlawful distinctive signs, advertising materials and materials or implements used specifically to
commit the infringement shall be seized and held by the competent authority pending the outcome of
the proceedings.
Article 47
Pursuant to Articles 222 to 235 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, criminal courts are indeed
empowered to order infringers to provide informatio n on the identity of third persons involved in the
production and distribution of infringing goods or services and on their channels of distribution.
Article 48
Under Articles 294 to 298 of the Code of Civil Procedure and Articles 120 to 136 of the
Courts (Organization and Competence) Law, whoever obtains enforcement of a precautionary
measure or order shall be liable for any damages and prejudice caused to the party against whom the
measure has been taken and for any resulting costs, if the application is not filed within the prescribed
time-limit, if the precautionary measure is revoked, or if the application is declared inadmissible.
To guarantee that this liability is met, where a precautionary measure or order is requested
and prior to its application the court may require the posting of security or other assurance sufficient
to prevent abuse and protect both the party against whom the measure has been taken and the
authorities themselves against such damages and prejudice as might ensue.
The authorities that have ordered such a measure shall be exempt from all liability unless they
have acted in bad faith, in which case those responsible may be subject to penalties such asimprisonment, suspension and the payment of damages.
Article 49
Although Honduran legislation sets forth administrative procedures for ensuring enforcement
of intellectual property rights, such procedures appl y solely to matters involving copyright and related
rights.
Under the terms of Article 125 of the Law on Copyright and Related Rights, the
Administrative Office of Copyright and Related Righ ts, being a department of the General Directorate
of Intellectual Property, has the following functions:  "…(2) complying and monitoring compliance
with the laws governing copyright and related rights; …(5) acting as mediator in such disputes as may
arise:  (a) between authors, the various holders of rights and users;  (b) between authors' associations;
…(7) conducting administrative proceedings regarding complaints of violations of this Law and
imposing the penalties established therein" (Article 125).
In the event of any controversy regarding the rights protected by this Law, the Administrative
Office shall act as mediator between the parties, without prejudice to the right of those parties, or of
the Public Prosecutor’s Office, to take legal action in the competent courts (Article 126).IP/Q/HND/1, IP/Q2/HND/1,
IP/Q3/HND/1, IP/Q4/HND/1
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The Administrative Office is empowered to impose penalties on those responsible for
infringing a right protected under the applicable Law, in the form of fines ranging from 10 to 200
minimum salaries, depending on the seriousness of the infringement.  In cases of repeat violations, thefine shall be doubled, and the penalty of suspension or final annulment of the operating licence shall
be applied, where permission to operate is required (Article 156).
The Administrative Office may initiate the investigation of an infringement either  ex officio
or on denunciation (Article 158).
In accordance with the procedure laid down in the applicable Law, the person that is the
subject of a complaint shall be informed of the infr ingement that he is alleged to have committed and
shall be entitled to defend himself and present hi s own claims in writing (Article 160).  A summons
shall be served on the alleged infringer in person or on such members of his family or dependants as
can be located (Article 161).  In the event that he does not appear in the place, on the date and at the
time indicated in the summons, he shall be summoned anew.  If he fails to appear a second time, heshall be considered guilty of the actions ascrib ed to him and the corresponding resolution shall be
passed (Article 162).  If the person does appear, he shall be handed a copy of the denunciation, or of
the inspection certificate, where action has been taken ex officio , together with such proof as exists, so
that within a period of five days he may file his rebuttal (Article 163).  Once the denunciation has
been rebutted, the Administrative Office shall issue the appropriate resolution, provided that theevidence is considered sufficient and the person accused admits the charges made against him
(Article 164).  If the evidence proves to be insuff icient and the accused party denies the charges made,
a case shall be opened after a period of 10 days, following which the appropriate resolution shall be
issued (Article 165).
Injunctions served under administrative procedures include the order to withdraw the
infringing goods from circulation, prohibition of the marketing of goods serving to violate a protected
right, the order to confiscate goods, and the order to suspend the provision of a service or to close an
establishment (Articles 13 of the Law on Administrative Procedure and 116 to 118 of the General
Law on Public Administration).
Article 50
Pursuant to Article 165 of the Industrial Property Law, the courts may be requested to adopt
such immediate precautionary measures as are necessary to prevent or halt infringement of a protected
right, to avoid its consequences, to obtain or preser ve evidence, and to ensure the effectiveness of the
action brought and the award of damages. Such measures may be requested prior to, during, orfollowing the proceedings.  Where ordered before the opening of proceedings, the measures may be
implemented without prior hearing of the other party.
Without prejudice to other applicable measures under the terms of the Code of Criminal
Procedure, the court may order:
• The immediate cessation of the infringing acts;
• the preventive seizure, withholding or deposit of the infringing goods and the means
used predominantly to commit the infringement;
• the posting by the alleged infringer of security or a guarantee to cover payment of any
compensation for damages;  andIP/Q/HND/1, IP/Q2/HND/1,
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• the suspension of importation or exportation of the goods or means predominantly
used to commit the infringement.
Likewise, goods displaying unlawful distinctive signs, advertising materials referring to such
signs and materials and implements used to comm it the infringement, shall be detained or seized
pending the outcome of the proceedings, as stipulated in Article 169 of the Industrial Property Law.
As regards copyright and related rights, Article 174 of the relevant Law establishes that the
holder of the corresponding rights may ask the judicial authorities, as a precautionary measure, to
seize:
• Any work, publication or copies fraudulently reproduced;
• the proceeds obtained through the disposal or hiring of such works, publications or
copies;
• the proceeds from theatrical, cinematographic or orchestral performances, or any
other similar work;  and
• copies of works or of sound recordings which may be reasonably assumed to have
been produced or imported without the authorization of the right holder, together with
the packaging of those copies, such means as may have been used to produce them,
and the business documents, reports or papers relating to the said copies, as well as
the deposit of income resulting from such activities.
Likewise, an order may be issued to suspend the circulation of goods that may be reasonably
assumed to be unlawful, in which case the provisions of the Customs Code apply.
Pursuant to the Law on Copyright and Related Rights, the judicial authorities may further be
requested to prohibit or suspend the public showing or performance of a work or phonogram that has
been produced without due authorization by the right holder (Article 176), and to suspend a theatricalperformance or the performance of instrumental or vocal music broadcast without the author's consent
(Article 180).
The person requesting any such measure is required to have instituted the relevant legal
proceedings and to provide sufficient guarantees to insure against such harm as he may cause thedefendant (Article 177).
The competent court shall immediately decree the precautionary measures requested, in
accordance with the provisions of the Code of Civil Procedure (Article 178).
Articles 51, 52, 53, 54, 55, 56, 57, 58, 59 and 60
All goods or products that infringe an intellec tual property right may be seized at the border
by the country's customs authorities.
The customs procedure may be initiated ex officio  or at the request of a party, if it is apparent
that the goods infringe an intellectual property right or if the aggrieved right holder has sufficientevidence to file a complaint on the me rits with the relevant authorities.IP/Q/HND/1, IP/Q2/HND/1,
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In both instances the customs authorities shall order the border measure at the time of
inspection, by suspending the release and admission of the goods or the export process for a period of
10 working days.
Goods that may be subject to a border measure by the customs authorities are those found to
be counterfeit that bear an unauthorized trademark identical to a mark registered for such goods, with
the exception of goods in transit and non-commercial articles imported as part of travellers' personal
effects.
The holder of a protected intellectual property right may request the suspension, as a
provisional measure, of the release and admission of goods or the export process, provided that he:
(a) Proves he is the holder of the right allegedly infringed;
(b) posts security sufficient to cover such damage and prejudice as might be caused to the
party that is subject to the measure;
(c) provides all the information required to identify the allegedly infringing goods;(d) identifies the importer or exporter;
(e) describes the unlawful goods allegedly due to be imported or exported;
(f) identifies the customs office through which the goods are to enter, indicating the 
likely date of entry or exit of the goods and the means of transport used;  and
(g) any other information that the customs authorities deem necessary.
When the customs authorities have taken the nece ssary action, they shall inform the interested
parties, within one working day at most, of the detention of the goods and shall make the latter
available in a warehouse designated for the purpose. In so doing, the authorities shall draw up an
official report including the following:
(a) Name and level of responsibility of the official in charge of the procedure;
(b) description, nature and other characteristics of the goods;(c) decision and grounds for ordering the su spension of free circulation of goods of 
foreign origin;
(d) notification of the above to the party concerned;  and(e) place where the goods are to be deposited and held at the disposal of the competent
authority.
The person subject to the above measure shall respond within a period of 10 working days
from the date of the notification of suspension, during which he may submit appropriate evidence,
pleas and grounds for defence in relation to the claim against him and may post an indemnity bondsufficient to cover any damage or injury that might be caused by the lifting of the measure.
The competent authority shall give a final ruling on the border measures procedure and place
the security, guarantee or indemnity bond at the disposal of the party in whose favour it has ruled.IP/Q/HND/1, IP/Q2/HND/1,
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The length and cost of proceedings will depend on the complexity of the case.  The person subject to
suspension of the release of the goods into free circulation may provide an indemnity bond to have the
measure lifted.  Otherwise, it will be lifted in th e final ruling of the authority that determines what
shall become of the goods.
In all matters pertaining to border measures, the applicable provisions are Articles 1, 2, 3 and
57 of the Customs Law and the draft regulations on the procedure governing special border measure
requirements ( Reglamento del Procedimiento Regulador de las Prescripciones Especiales
Relacionadas con las Medidas en Frontera ), contained in Annex 1.
Article 61
As indicated earlier, in criminal cases it is for the Public Prosecutor to institute criminal
proceedings against those responsible for the infringement, provided that the holder or licensee of the
infringed rights has initiated the prosecution by filing a complaint for violation (Articles 16 and 152.1,
2 and 3 of the Code of Criminal Procedure).
The courts competent to try criminal cases of infringement of an intellectual property right are
those that have jurisdiction in the place where the infringement was committed (Article 38 of the
Code of Criminal Procedure).
As regards criminal procedure, please refer to the responses to questions 22, 23, 24 and 25 of
the Checklist of Issues on Enforcement presented by  Honduras to the Secretariat of the World Trade
Organization (WTO).
Infringements of all intellectual property rights recognized under the relevant laws are subject
to such criminal procedures and penalties as are prescribed under the classification of infringing
conduct set forth in Articles 284 to 253 of the Criminal Code.
The aforementioned articles of the Criminal Code stipulate a term of imprisonment of three to
six years for anyone found guilty of serious infringement of an intellectual property right and a fine,
to be determined by the court, in an amount ranging from 50,000 to 100,000 lempiras, without
prejudice to fines or administrative penalties imposed by other authorities.
Article 299.3 of the Criminal Code specifies, moreover, that anyone found guilty of an act
classified as unfair competition under the rules set out in the Commercial Code, other special laws or
international agreements shall be punishable by three to five years of imprisonment and a fine ranging
from 50,000 to 100,000 lempiras.
In addition to the penalties described above,  criminal proceedings in matters relating to
intellectual property apply the provisions already commented upon in Honduras' response to
question 24 of the Checklist of Issues on Enforcement.  Without distinction as to the protected right,
these provisions specify the possibility of ordering the seizure, forfeiture or destruction of infringinggoods and of all materials and implements used predominantly to commit the infringement.
2. What protection does your copyright legislation afford to “foreign works”?
Article 4 of the Law on Copyright and Related Rights stipulates that the Law shall protect the
rights of authors of Honduran nationality and those of foreigners resident in the country, together with
foreign works published for the first time in H onduras.  It also provides for the protection of
audiovisual works whose producer has Honduran nationality or has his habitual residence orIP/Q/HND/1, IP/Q2/HND/1,
IP/Q3/HND/1, IP/Q4/HND/1
Page 13
headquarters in Honduras, and architectural works constructed in Honduras or works of fine art
forming part of a building located in the country.
 The Article further stipulates that the rights of foreigners not resident in Honduras and whose
works have been published for the first time outside the country shall be protected by this Law, in
accordance with the international agreements to which Honduras is party, including the TRIPS
Agreement.
The principle of reciprocity applies solely where no such agreement exists. Stateless persons
and refugees shall be granted the rights of the State in which they are domiciled.
Article 5 of the Law specifies that protection shall apply or be granted in the following cases:
(a) When the performer has Honduran nationality;
(b) when the performance has taken place on national territory;  and(c) when the performance has been fixed in the form of a phonogram satisfying the
prerequisites for its protection contained in Article 6 of this Law or, where it has not
been fixed, broadcast as part of a protected programme.
Article 6 of the Law establishes that protection shall be granted for phonograms in the
following cases:
(a) When the producer has Honduran nationality;
(b) when the first fixation has been made on national territory;  and
(c) when the phonogram has been published for the first time in Honduras.
As for broadcasting organizations, Article 7 of th e Law stipulates that their broadcasts shall be
protected in the following cases:
(a) When the broadcaster's headquarters is located in Honduras;  and
(b) when the broadcast has been made from a transmitter located in Honduras.
All related rights whose holders are foreigners not resident in Honduras shall be protected
pursuant to the international agreements to which the Republic of Honduras is party, including the
TRIPS Agreement, or, where no such agreement exists, when the State of the right holder's nationality
provides effective protection for right holders of Honduran nationality (Article 8).
Article 44 of the Law provides that the protection referred to above shall be granted in respect
of economic rights during the author's lifetime a nd for 75 years following his death.  It further
specifies that in the case of works by foreign authors, published for the first time outside the country,
the period of protection shall not exceed that recognized by the law of the country in which the work
has been published.  However, if such legislation grants more extensive protection than that provided
for in this Law, then the provisions under the latter shall prevail.
However, since Honduras is bound by the commitment to recognize the principle of national
treatment, pursuant to Article 3 of the TRIPS Agr eement, in matters of copyright and related rightsIP/Q/HND/1, IP/Q2/HND/1,
IP/Q3/HND/1, IP/Q4/HND/1
Page 14
only the exceptions to the principle allowed by Article 3, which are specifically covered by the Berne
and Paris Conventions, apply to nationals of Members of the World Trade Organization (WTO).
In practice, this concerns the following cases.Under the terms of the Berne Convention:
(a) In the case of works of applied art protected in the country of origin solely as
industrial designs and models, it is permitted to afford protection not extending
beyond that provided for industrial designs and models under the legislation of the
country where protection is claimed, except where no such special protection exists inthat country, in which case the works in question shall be protected as artistic works
(Article 2.7 of the Berne Convention).  Article 4 of the relevant Honduran Law
establishes that the rights of foreign authors not resident in the country or whose
works have been published for the first time outside the country shall be protected in
accordance with the international agreements to which Honduras is party.  The aboveexception would therefore only apply to foreign works in whose country of origin
works of applied art are protected solely as industrial designs (industrial designs and
models).
(b) Where a country outside the Berne Union affords more limited protection than that
provided for in the Convention, the protection given to the works of authors who are,
at the date of the first publication thereof, nationals of that country and are not
habitually resident in one of the countries of the Union may be restricted to the level
of protection granted by the non-Member country (Article 6 of the Berne
Convention).  The Convention requires the restriction to be notified to the DirectorGeneral of the World Intellectual Property Organization, and Article 3 of the TRIPS
Agreement stipulates that notification shall also be given to the Council for TRIPS.
Honduras has not made use of this possibility so far.
(c) Where the term of protection in the country in which protection is claimed is longer
than that stipulated in the legislation of the country of origin of the work, it is
permitted to establish that the term shall not exceed that fixed in the country of origin.
(Article 7.8 of the Berne Convention).  As the period of protection laid down in
Honduran legislation exceeds the minimum period prescribed under the TRIPS
Agreement, Article 44 of the Law on Copyright and Related Rights specifies that, in
the case of works by foreign authors published for the first time outside the country,
the term of protection shall not exceed that recognized by the law of the country inwhich the work has been published.  However, if the period of protection in the
country where the work has been published is longer than that granted under
Honduran law, the provisions of the latter shall prevail.
(d) In the case of original works of art and original manuscripts of writers and composers
(“droit de suite ”), the Convention allows for the right to interest in sales subsequent
to the first transfer by the author of the work to apply solely where legislation in the
country to which the author belongs so permits (Article 14 ter (2) of the Berne
Convention).  In accordance with the provisions of Article 4 of the Law on Copyright
and Related Rights, in the case of foreign works such a right may be claimed onlywhere it is recognized under the legislation of the country of origin of the author.
Under the terms of the Rome Convention:IP/Q/HND/1, IP/Q2/HND/1,
IP/Q3/HND/1, IP/Q4/HND/1
Page 15
Phonograms
(a) In the case of secondary use of phonograms, it is permitted to grant the relevant right
solely to producers that are nationals of a Contracting State;  and
(b) in the case of producers of phonograms that are nationals of another Contracting
State, the extent and the term of protection may be restricted to those fixed by that
State.
Broadcasting organizations
The Convention allows such organizations to deny the right of communication to the public
of television broadcasts to Contracting States having declared that they will not apply such a right.
Since Article 8 of the Law on Copyright and Related Rights stipulates that protection of
phonograms and broadcasts the holders of rights in which are foreigners not resident in the countryshall be afforded in accordance with the internat ional agreements to which Honduras is party, the
rights laid down in Articles 14.2 and 14.3 of the TRIPS Agreement apply to Honduran nationals and
foreigners alike.  In the case of secondary use of phonograms, however, the aforementioned right is
granted solely to nationals of countries guaranteeing the same protection for Honduran right holders.
As to the term of protection, since Honduras provides for a period in excess of that prescribed underthe TRIPS Agreement it also reserves the right to  restrict the term of protection for foreign
phonograms to that applicable in the country of origin (Article 44 of the Law on Copyright and
Related Rights).
III. REPLIES TO THE QUESTIONS POSED BY THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES
AND THEIR MEMBER STATES
A. G
ENERAL PROVISIONS
1. Please describe if your legislation includes measures necessary to protect public health
and nutrition, and to promote the public interest in sectors of vital importance to your socio-
economic and technological development as mentioned under Article 8 of the TRIPS
Agreement.  If yes, please explain how such measures are consistent with the provisions of the
TRIPS Agreement.
The Honduran legislation does not currently include any intellectual property measure for
promoting or protecting specific sectors.  However, under Article 3 of the Industrial Property Law, no
protection under a patent, registration or authoriz ation will be granted and no publication in the
Official Journal ( La Gaceta ) ordered in respect of any of the legal interests regulated by this Law, if
the content or form are contrary to ordre public  or morality or contravene any legal provision.
B. COPYRIGHT AND RELATED RIGHTS
2. Please state how your legislation provides for the protection of the exclusive rights of
authors in relation to their literary and artistic  works, as specified in Article 9 of the TRIPS
Agreement which requires Members to comply with  Articles 1-21 of the Berne Convention and
the Appendix to the B erne Convention (1971).
The Honduran Law on Copyright and Related Rights complies with the provisions of
Article 9 of the TRIPS Agreement, as well as with those of Article 6 bis of the Berne Convention
(1971).IP/Q/HND/1, IP/Q2/HND/1,
IP/Q3/HND/1, IP/Q4/HND/1
Page 16
All original creations in the literary and artistic field are protected, irrespective of their nature
or merit and whatever their method or form of expression, quality or purpose (Article 2). The Law
protects both the original and derived works, so that the following are protected as independent works,without prejudice to the copyright in the original works:
• Translations, adaptations, musical arrangements and other transformations of a work;
and
• collective works, such as periodicals, anthologies, dictionaries and the like, where the
selection and arrangement constitute an original creation (Article 12).
Copyright in Honduras includes moral and economic rights which confer on the author full
disposal and the exclusive right to exploit the work, without limitations other than those established in
the Law.
The moral rights of an author are entirely personal, inalienable, unrenounceable and
imprescriptible and comprise the following entitlements:
• To claim at any time and in any place the authorship of his work and, in particular,
the mention of his name or pseudonym as the author thereof in all reproductions and
uses of the work;
• to oppose any distortion, mutilation or other modification of the work, where such an
act may harm or harms his honour or reputation, or the work loses literary, academic,
artistic or scientific merit;
• to keep the work unpublished or anonymous and to postpone its publication,
including after his death;
• to make successive changes to his work, subject to the indemnification of third
parties, if they are harmed thereby;  and
• to withdraw his work from circulation or suspend any authorized form of use thereof,
subject to compensation for any prejudice that may be caused to third parties.
Of the rights mentioned, only those that relate to the authorship and integrity of the work pass
to the author’s heirs and, where there are none, to the Administrative Office of Copyright and RelatedRights (Articles 36, 37 and 38).
The economic rights include:
• The right of reproduction by any method and in any form, whether complete or
partial, permanent or temporary;
• the right of translation;
• the right of adaptation, arrangement or transformation;
• the right to broadcast;IP/Q/HND/1, IP/Q2/HND/1,
IP/Q3/HND/1, IP/Q4/HND/1
Page 17
• the right of communication to the public (by declamation, presentation or
performance, projection or public showing, transmission by wire, dissemination by
means of loudspeakers, access to databases and any other means, including those
where the public chooses the place and time for accessing the works);
• the right of distribution by means of sale, rental, public lending or any other transfer
of ownership or possession;
• the hiring out of an audiovisual work, a work incorporated in a sound recording, or a
computer program;
• the right of importation;  and
• in the case of works of fine art or original manuscripts of writers or composers, the
right to receive 5 per cent (5%) of the selling price of works sold by public auction orthrough the business of a professional art dealer.
These rights are set out in Articles 39 and 43 of the Law and are subject to no limitations
other than those specified in the Berne Conven tion, without prejudice to Honduras' right, as a
developing country, to make use of the rights provided under Articles II and III of the Annex to the
Convention.
Those economic rights that relate to works whose term of protection can be calculated on the
basis of the physical life of the author are protected for the whole of the author’s life and seventy-five
(75) years following his death (Article 44).
In the case of those works whose term of protection cannot be calculated on the basis of the
life of the author, the economic rights are protected for seventy-five (75) years from the disclosure or
publication of the work or, failing that, from its making, as specified in Article 12 of the TRIPS
Agreement (Article 45).  An exception is made for photographic works whose term of protection is
fifty (50) years.
3. Please describe the protection accorded to authors of computer programs, databases or
compilations of data.
 Under Article 2 of the Law on Copyright and Related Rights, literary or artistic works are all
original creations regardless of their nature and whatever their method or form of expression, qualityor purpose.  The same article gives an illustrative list of protected works, which includes computer
programs.  Computer programs are protected as literary works and databases as compilations insofar
as they constitute an original creation (Article 2).  The rights of the creators of these works are the
same as those mentioned in the response to Question 2 and, more particularly, include the right to hire
out a computer program, irrespective of the owner of  the copy (Article 39). In addition, other specific
provisions concerning the protection of computer programs can be found in Articles 32, 33 and 34 of
the Law on Copyright and Related Rights.
 
 4. Please state whether your legislation provides for a rental right and, if so, the works to
which it applies.
 
The economic rights conferred on the author of a work by Honduran law include the right to
authorize or prohibit any form of distribution of the work, including by rental.  In addition, there is a
specific provision that recognizes a rental right for audiovisual works, works incorporated in a sound
recording and computer programs (Article 39).IP/Q/HND/1, IP/Q2/HND/1,
IP/Q3/HND/1, IP/Q4/HND/1
Page 18
5. Please describe the rights granted to performers, producers of phonograms (sound
recordings) and broadcasting organizations under your legislation .
Performers
Under Article 113 of the Law on Copyright and Related Rights, performers have the
exclusive right to authorize the following acts:
(a) The broadcasting of their performances;(b) the communication of their performances to the public;(c) the fixation of their unfixed performances;(d) the reproduction of a fixation of their performances;
(e) the original distribution to the public of a fixation of their performances;
(f) the public hiring or loan of a fixation of their performances;  and(g) the making available to the public, by wire or wireless means, of their performances
fixed on a phonogram, so that each individual may have access thereto in a place and
at a time of his own choosing.
Phonogram producers
Under Article 118 of the Law on Copyrigh t and Related Rights, phonogram producers have
the exclusive right to authorize or prohibit the reproduction, be it direct or indirect, communication
and distribution to the public of their phonograms through sale, hiring, importing or any other means,
including making copies of their phonograms available to the public by whatever means so that
members of the public may have access thereto in a place and at a time of their own choosing, or any
other use of their phonograms.
Broadcasting organizations
Under Article 119 of the Law on Copyright an d Related Rights, broadcasting organizations
have the exclusive right to authorize or prohibit:
(a) The fixation of their transmissions;
(b) the reproduction of fixations of their programmes;(c) the retransmission of their programmes;  and(d) the communication to the public of their programmes for television where this occurs
in places accessible to the public, upon payment of an admission fee.
6. Please state whether your legislation provides for any limitation or exception in relation
to each of the rights described above in acco rdance with the relevant provisions of the Berne
and Rome Conventions and in light of Articles 13 and 14.6 of the TRIPS Agreement .IP/Q/HND/1, IP/Q2/HND/1,
IP/Q3/HND/1, IP/Q4/HND/1
Page 19
Performers
The rights conferred upon performers do not apply to:
• The broadcasting of their performances where the broadcast is made from a fixation
of the performance or is a rebroadcast authorized by the broadcasting organization;and
• the communication of their performances to the public where the said communication
is made from a fixation or broadcast of the performance (Article 113).
Phonogram producers
The rights conferred on phonogram producers do not apply to acts relating to phonograms
whose purpose is:
• Private use;  or
• use for teaching or scientific research purposes (Article 121).
Broadcasting organizations
The rights conferred on broadcasting organizations do not apply to the reproduction of
fixations of their programmes where it is a question of:
• Private use (Article 121);
• the use of fragments with a maximum duration of sixty (60) seconds for supplying
information on current affairs (Article 121);
• temporary recordings produced by a broadcasting organization by its own means and
for its own broadcasts (Article 121);  or
• use for exclusively educational or research purposes (Article 119).
7. Please state the terms of protection of each right described above and the work or
subject matter to which it applies.
The term of protection for performers’ rights is seventy-five (75) years from the end of the
year in which the performance took place, with regard to performances not recorded on a phonogram,
or seventy-five (75) years from the end of the year of fixation, with regard to performances recorded
on a phonogram (Article 120 of the Law on Copyright and Related Rights).
The term of protection for the rights conferred on phonogram producers is seventy-five (75)
years from the end of the year of fixation (Artic le 120 of the Law on Copyright and Related Rights).
The term of protection for the rights conferred on broadcasting organizations is seventy-five
(75) years from the end of the year in which the programme was broadcast (Article 120 of the Law on
Copyright and Related Rights).IP/Q/HND/1, IP/Q2/HND/1,
IP/Q3/HND/1, IP/Q4/HND/1
Page 20
8. Please state how your legislation grants the retroactive protection provided pursuant to
Article 18 of the Berne Convention (the obligatio n of which derives from Article 9 of the TRIPS
Agreement) and Article 14.6 of the TRIPS Agreement.
Under Article 190 of the Law on Copyright and Related Rights, the provisions of that Law
shall be applied to:
(a) Works created prior to the date of its entry into force, provided that those works are
not yet in the public domain owing to the expiry of the term of protection to which
they  were subject under the previous legislation or the legislation of their country of
origin;
(b) performances that took place or were fixed prior to the date of its entry into force,
provided that those performances are not yet in the public domain owing to the expiry
of the term of protection to which they were subject under the previous legislation or
the legislation of their country of origin;
(c) phonograms that were fixed prior to the date of its entry into force, provided that
those phonograms are not yet in the public domain owing to the expiry of the term of
protection to which they were subject under the previous legislation or the legislation
of their country of origin;  and
(d) broadcasts that took place prior to the date of its entry into force, provided that those
broadcasts are not yet in the public domain owing to the expiry of the term of
protection to which they were subject under the previous legislation or the legislation
of their country of origin.
C. TRADEMARKS
9. Please give the definition of a sign under your national legislation and explain under
what conditions it is protectable.
According to Articles 79(2) and 82 of the Industrial Property Law, a mark is any visible sign
capable of distinguishing the products or services of one enterprise from the products or services of
other enterprises.  Marks may consist of fanciful denominations, names, pseudonyms, commercialslogans, figures, portraits, letters, numerals, monograms, labels, badges, impressions, emblems,
borders, lines, stripes, or combinations and arrangements of colours.  Marks may also consist of the
shape or presentation of the product or its packaging or wrappings, or of the means or place of retail
sale of the corresponding products or services, as well as of national and foreign geographical
indications, provided they are sufficiently arbitrary and distinctive with respect to the products orservices to which they are applied and their use is not liable to create confusion or induce in the mind
of the public erroneous or unjustified expectations with regard to the origin, source, qualities or
characteristics of the products or services for which the marks are used.
 The only requirements for the protection of a sign are:
(a) That it be visible;
(b) that it be capable of distinguishing the products or services to which it is applied;  and(c) that it be registered in the country, except in the case of well-known marks.IP/Q/HND/1, IP/Q2/HND/1,
IP/Q3/HND/1, IP/Q4/HND/1
Page 21
10. Please confirm whether or not services are a protectable subject matter in your
trademark law.  Please confirm if signs, such as trade names, are protectable.  Please describe if
elements such as sound, perfumes and containers are protectable.
 In accordance with the definition of a mark in Article 79(2) of the Industrial Property Law,
trademark protection is granted for the purpose of identifying both products and services.  Names,
denominations and signs that identify or distinguish an enterprise or establishment are also protected
under the provisions on trade names, emblems and labels (Articles 79(4), (5) and (6), 118, 119, 120
and 122 of the Industrial Property Law).
 
 Perfumes and sounds as such are not protectable as marks, since under the Law in order to be
registrable for identifying products or services signs must be visible (Article 79(2) of the Law).
 
11. Please explain what the requirements of use are, if any, as a condition for a trademark
registration.  Please explain the definition of use and the conditions of maintenance of a
registration in that respect.
Under the Honduran legislation, it is not necessary to prove prior use of a mark in order to
apply for and obtain registration.  However, the registration of a mark may be opposed on the basis of
prior use of the sign, provided that an application to register the used mark is made at the time the
objection is raised (Article 90 of the Industrial Property Law).
The non-use of a mark gives grounds for cancellation, at the request of an interested party.  In
this case, the mark must not have been used for an uninterrupted period of three (3) years prior to the
initiation of the cancellation proceeding (Article 106 of the Industrial Property Law).
For these purposes, it is understood that a mark is in use when the products or services it
distinguishes have been placed in circulation or are available on the market under that mark, in thenormal way and in the normal amount, with due account for the size of the domestic market, the
nature of the products or services concerned and local marketing practices (Article 81 of the Industrial
Property Law).
The registration of a mark will not be cancelled if the non-use is due to circumstances arising
independently of the will of the trademark owner which he has not been able to avoid or prevent.
Lack of economic or technical resources for carrying out an industrial or commercial activity and lack
of demand for the product or service distinguished by the mark are not regarded as sufficient
justification (Article 107.1 of the Industrial Property Law).
If the non-use relates only to one or a few of the products or services for which the mark was
registered, the registration will be cancelled only in respect of the products or services for which themark has not been used.  This will be reflected in a shortening of the list of products or services
covered by the mark (Article 107.2 of the Industrial Property Law).
Use of the mark by a licensee or other authorized person shall be regarded as use by the
registration holder, for all purposes relating to tr ademark use (Article 107.3 of the Industrial Property
Law).
12. Please confirm whether or not your legislation permits that the registration of
trademarks be indefinitely renewable .
Under Articles 92 and 93 of the Industrial Property Law, the initial term of protection for a
registered mark is ten (10) years from the date of granting of the registration, and registration may beIP/Q/HND/1, IP/Q2/HND/1,
IP/Q3/HND/1, IP/Q4/HND/1
Page 22
renewed indefinitely for successive periods of ten years each, provided that renewal is requested and
the corresponding maintenance fee is paid.
13. Please describe the special requirements, if any, prescribed by your legislation
concerning the use of a trademark.
A trademark is understood to be in use when the products or services it distinguishes have
been placed in circulation or are available on the market under that mark, in the normal way and in the
normal amount, with due account for the size of the domestic market, the nature of the products or
services concerned and local marketing practices (Article 81 of the Industrial Property Law).
Use of the mark by a licensee or other authorized person shall be regarded as use by the
registration holder, for all purposes relating to tr ademark use (Article 107 of the Industrial Property
Law).
Use of a mark in a form which differs from that in which it was registered solely with respect
to details or features that do not affect its distinctiveness as a mark does not constitute grounds for
cancellation of the registration or lessen the prot ection afforded by the mark (Article 107 of the
Industrial Property Law).
D. GEOGRAPHICAL INDICATIONS
14. Please explain whether or not your trademark registration authority refuses a
trademark application if  it contains a geographical indication.
The Honduran Industrial Property Law (Article 123) prohibits the commercial use, in relation
to a product or service, of geographical indications that are false or misleading with respect to theorigin of the product or service or whose use might create confusion in the mind of the public with
respect to the origin, source, quality or any other characteristic of the product or service.
The Law also prohibits the registration of marks which:
• are liable to mislead business circles or the public as to the origin, nature, method of
manufacture, qualities, suitability for use or consumption, quantity or any othercharacteristic of the products or services concerned (Article 83.9);  or
• consist of a geographical indication that is insufficiently arbitrary or distinctive with
respect to the products or services to which it is applied (Articles 82 and 83.11).
15. Please give the definition of a geographical indication in your legislation.
The Honduran Industrial Property Law defines a geographical indication as a name,
denomination, expression, image or sign which indicates, directly or indirectly, that a product orservice originates in a particular country, group of countries, region, locality or place (Article 79.8)
16. Please describe and explain the provisions of your legislation establishing a link, if any,
between the characteristics of an indication and its geographical origin.
Under Honduran law, all geographical indications re fer to the origin of a product.  Where, in
addition, a geographical indication refers to characteristics of the product attributable to its
geographical origin, including human and natural factors, it is called an appellation of origin
(Article 79(8) and (9) of the Industrial Property Law).IP/Q/HND/1, IP/Q2/HND/1,
IP/Q3/HND/1, IP/Q4/HND/1
Page 23
The Honduran legislation regulates the protection of national appellations of origin and,
where foreign ones are concerned, refers to the corresponding provisions of the treaties concluded by
Honduras.
17. Please describe how additional protection is granted by your legislation to wines and
spirits.  Please mention other types of products, if any, covered by this additional protection.
Article 23.2 of the TRIPS Agreement requires Members to refuse or invalidate the
registration of a trademark which contains a geographical indication identifying wines or spirits,
essentially on the basis of the quality of the products attributable to their geographical origin and
natural factors present in the region in which th ey are produced.  Under the Honduran legislation,
foreign appellations of origin are protected in accordance with the corresponding provisions of the
treaties concluded by Honduras, which include the TRIPS Agreement.
Follow-up to question 17
Please explain whether Article 23.2 of the TRIPS Agreement has been explicitly
transposed into Honduras legislation.  If so, please explain how it fully respects the requirements
of this provision.  If not, please explain how Article 23.2 of the TRIPS Agreement is directly
applicable in Honduras and how citizens of th e WTO Members can directly enjoy its protection.
Honduras's Industrial Property Law defines a geographical indication as a name, appellation,
expression, image or sign that indicates, directly or indirectly, that a product or service comes from a
particular country, group of countries, region, locality or place (Article 79, subparagraph 8).  When
the geographical indication refers to specific characteristics of the product which are due to the
geographical origin of its production, including human and natural factors, it is called an appellationof origin (Article 79, subparagraphs 8 and 9 of the Industrial Property Law).
The TRIPS Agreement (Article 22) protects geographical indications which identify a good as
originating in the territory of a Member, where a given quality, reputation or other characteristic of
the good is essentially attributable to its geographical origin, i.e. when it has the characteristics that
define an appellation of origin under Honduran law.  Members have the obligation to establish
mechanisms in their legislation to prevent:
(a) The use of any means that indicates or suggests that the good in question originates in
a geographical area other than the true place of origin of the good;
(b) the use of a geographical indication which constitutes an act of unfair competition;(c) the registration of a trademark which consists of a geographical indication if the
trademark is requested with respect to the same goods identified in the geographical
indication as originating in that territory;
(d) the cancellation of the registration of a trademark which consists of a geographical
indication and that was obtained for the same products identified by the geographical
indication.
In all of the above cases, the obligation exists provided that the utilization of the geographical
indication could mislead the consumer as to the true place of origin of the good.
In the case of wines and spirits, broader protection is provided for.  Members have the
obligation to prevent the use of geographical indications identifying wines and spirits not originating
in the place indicated by the geographical indication, even where:IP/Q/HND/1, IP/Q2/HND/1,
IP/Q3/HND/1, IP/Q4/HND/1
Page 24
(a) The true origin of the wine or spirit is indicated;
(b) the geographical indication is used in translation;(c) the geographical indication is accompanied by expressions such as "kind", "type",
"style", "imitation" or the like.
In other words, the prohibition of the use of geographical indications identifying wines or
spirits applies even if the consumer is advised of the true origin of the good or instead of the exact
geographical indication, a translation thereof is used.
Consequently, Members are required to refuse the registration of a trademark which consists
of a geographical indication identifying wines or spirits when such registration is requested for wines
or spirits that do not originate in that territory and, where the trademark has already been registered, to
invalidate that registration, either ex officio or at the request of an interested party (Article 23.1 and
23.2 of the TRIPS Agreement).
Honduran law includes the provision laid down in Article 22.2 of the TRIPS Agreement, and
prohibits the registration of trademarks which:
(a) May mislead trade circles or the public as to the source, nature, method of
manufacture, qualities, suitability for use or consumption, quantity or any other
characteristic of the product or services concerned (Article 83, subparagraph 9);
(b) consist of a geographical indication that is not sufficiently arbitrary or distinctive with
respect to the goods or services to which it is applied (Articles 82 and 83,
subparagraph 11).  According to this provision, when it comes to registering
geographical indications identifying wines and spirits as trademarks for these same
goods, they are not considered to be arbitrary and distinctive geographical
indications.
The registration of a trademark granted in contravention of the above paragraph may be
cancelled at the request of the interested party (Article 105 of the Industrial Property Law).  Although
there is no specific provision for requesting that the registration of a trademark containing a
geographical indication identifying wines or spirits be invalidated, when the trademark has been
obtained for the same products, the interested person may request the invalidation of the registration,
because in such cases, the geographical indication registered as a trademark is not considered arbitraryor distinctive with respect to the products to which it applies.  There is no set time-limit for requesting
the invalidation of a registration (Article 105 of the Industrial Property Law).
18. Please explain how exceptions under Article 24 of the TRIPS Agreement are used in
your jurisdiction.  Please provide examples of the use of the exceptions by courts or lists of
names considered as generic in your jurisdiction.
Under Article 127(3) of the Honduran Industrial Property Law, an appellation of origin
cannot be registered if it is no more than the common or generic name of a product.  For these
purposes, an appellation is deemed to be common or generic if it is considered to be such both bythose with expert knowledge of the type of products to which it is applied and by the general public.IP/Q/HND/1, IP/Q2/HND/1,
IP/Q3/HND/1, IP/Q4/HND/1
Page 25
E. INDUSTRIAL DESIGNS
19. Please explain whether or not your legislat ion extends to the protection of designs
dictated essentially by technical or functional considerations.  Please explain how textile designs
are protected.
Under Article 29.3 of the Industrial Property Law, an industrial design cannot be registered if
its appearance is entirely dictated by considerations of a technical nature or by the performance of a
technical function and it fails to incorporate any arbitrary contribution by the designer.  There is no
special or additional provision concerning the protection of textile designs.
20. Please explain how your legislation protects right holders of a design against importing
of articles bearing embodied or copied design.
Under Article 31 of the Industrial Property Law, industrial design protection confers on the
holder the right to proceed against anyone who, without his authorization, manufactures, sells, offers
for sale or uses, or imports or stocks for any of these purposes, a product that reproduces orincorporates the protected industrial design.
21. Please state whether or not your legislation provides for the right to issue a compulsory
licence for industrial designs.
Under Article 64 of the Industrial Property Law, the provisions relating to patents are
applicable, where appropriate, to industrial designs. In respect of patents, the same legislation allows
for the granting of compulsory licences in cases of non-use, public interest, national emergency,
nutrition, public health and national security or, where the licence relates to semi-conductor
technology, for public non-commercial use for the benefit of a public authority, or another party
acting on its behalf, or to remedy a practice determined to be anti-competitive (Articles 65, 67.2 and70 of the Industrial Property Law).
22. Please indicate for what period of time your legislation grants protection for industrial
designs.
Under Article 33 of the Industrial Property Law, an industrial design registration is valid for
five (5) years from the date of filing of the application with the Honduran registration office.
Registration may be extended for two additional periods of five (5) years each.
F. P
ATENTS
23. Please describe how your legislation defines the notions of:  novelty, inventiveness and
industrial application.
Under the Honduran legislation, an invention is considered new when it is not present in the
state of the art.  The state of the art consists of everything that has been disclosed or made available to
the public, anywhere in the world, prior to the date of filing of the patent application in Honduras or
prior to the date of filing of the foreign application whose priority is claimed, as appropriate.  The
state of the art is also considered to include the contents of a pending patent application filed prior tothe application under examination, but only insofar as those contents are included in the earlier
application when published.
For the purposes of determining the state of the art, no account will be taken of any disclosure
made during the year preceding the filing of the application in Honduras or, where appropriate, duringthe year preceding the filing of the application fo r which priority is claimed, provided that suchIP/Q/HND/1, IP/Q2/HND/1,
IP/Q3/HND/1, IP/Q4/HND/1
Page 26
disclosure was the result of the actions of the applicant or his assignee, or of a betrayal of trust, breach
of contract or unlawful act directed against either of them (Article 9 of the Industrial Property Law).
An invention is considered to involve an inve ntive step if, for a person well-versed in the
field, it is neither obvious nor obviously derived from the state of the art (Article 10 of the Industrial
Property Law).
An invention is regarded as capable of industrial application if it can be produced or used in
some type of industry, industry being understood in the broadest sense and including, among other
things, crafts, agriculture, mining, fisheries and services (Article 8 of the Industrial Property Law).
24. Please explain whether or not in your legislat ion, patent or otherwise, patent rights are
enjoyed without any exclusions.  If exclusions a re provided for, please describe in detail how
these exclusions are applied in legal as well as practical terms.
The rights for which Honduran patent law provides are enjoyable without any kind of
discrimination as to the place of invention, the field of technology or whether the products are
imported or locally produced.  The only exceptions are those stated in Article 7 of the Industrial
Property Law, where it is indicated that the following are not patentable:
(a) Essentially biological processes for the production or reproduction of plants, animals
or varieties thereof, including genetic processes and those relating to material capableof self-duplication, either direct or indirect, when such processes consist in selecting
or isolating available biological material and letting it act under natural conditions;
(b) plant varieties and species and animal breeds and species;  and
(c) diagnostic, therapeutic and surgical methods (Article 5(9) of the Industrial Property
Law).
25. Please explain whether your legislation prov ides for the exclusion of inventions from
patentability based on ordre public  or morality.  If so, please explain the relevant section of your
legislation and explain its formulation.  Please also explain if it has been applied in practice.
Honduran law does not provide for the exclusion of inventions from patentability on the basis
of ordre public  or morality, which does not mean that the marketing of such inventions cannot be
prevented.
26. Please explain whether or not diagnostic, therapeutic and surgical methods are excluded
from patentability in your legislation.  If so, please explain the relevant section of your
legislation and explain its formulation.
Diagnostic, therapeutic and surgical methods are excluded from patentability (Article 5(9) of
the Industrial Property Law).
27. Please explain whether or not plants, animals and essentially biological processes are
excluded from patentability in your legislation.  If so, please explain the relevant section of your
legislation and explain its formulation .
Under the Industrial Property Law, the following are not patentable:
• Essentially biological processes for the production or reproduction of plants, animals
or varieties thereof, including genetic processes and those relating to material capableIP/Q/HND/1, IP/Q2/HND/1,
IP/Q3/HND/1, IP/Q4/HND/1
Page 27
of self-duplication, either direct or indirect, when such processes consist in selecting
or isolating available biological material and letting it act under natural conditions
(Article 7(1);  and
• plant varieties and species and animal breeds and species (Article 7(2)).
In the case of plant varieties, a bill intended to adapt the law to the provisions of the UPOV
Convention (1991 Act) is currently before the Sovereign National Congress.  The preliminary draft
text of the Law for the Protection of New Varieties of Plants is annexed hereto.
28. Please describe how micro-organisms, non-essentially biological processes,
microbiological processes and plant varieties are prot ected in your legislation.  Please explain, in
this respect, the relevant sections of your legislation .
As they are not excluded from patentability, micro-organisms, non-essentially biological
processes and microbiological processes can be patented, provided that they are new, involve an
inventive step and are industrially applicable.
29. Please explain how your legislation protects  patent right holders against the importing
and against the offering for sale of a patented invention .
Under Article 17 of the Industrial Property Law, a patent confers on its owner the right to
exclude third parties from working the patented invention.  Thus, if the patent has been granted for aproduct, the owner is entitled to proceed ag ainst anyone who, without his authorization:
(a) Makes the patented product;(b) offers for sale, sells or uses the patented product;  or(c) imports or stocks the patented product with a view to using it, selling it or offering it
for sale.
If the patent has been granted for a process, the owner is entitled to proceed against anyone
who, without his authorization:
(a) Uses the patented process;(b) makes a product directly obtained by the patented process;(c) offers for sale, sells or uses a product obtained by the patented process;  or(d) imports or stocks a product obtained by the patented process with a view to using it,
selling it or offering it for sale.
30. Please state if your legislation provides for patent product protection of pharmaceutical
and agricultural chemical products.  In the a ffirmative, please indicate the legal reference.
The Honduran Industrial Property Law does not exclude from patentability pharmaceutical or
agricultural chemical products, provided that they are new, involve an inventive step and are
industrially applicable.
31. Please clarify if the patent protection of a process, as provided for in your legislation,
covers the product obtained directly by that process.IP/Q/HND/1, IP/Q2/HND/1,
IP/Q3/HND/1, IP/Q4/HND/1
Page 28
Yes.  Under Article 17 of the Industrial Property Law, the rights of the owner of a patent
granted for a process include the right to proceed against anyone who, without his authorization:
• Makes a product directly obtained by the patented process;
• offers for sale, sells or uses a product obtained by the patented process;  or
• imports or stocks a product obtained by the patented process with a view to using it,
selling it or offering it for sale.
32. Please explain the additional conditions, if any, in your legislation other than the
sufficient disclosure of the invention in Articl e 29 of the TRIPS Agreement (e.g. submission of
justification for access to genetic material or prior informed consent to its use).  If such
additional conditions exist, please point out the relevant legislations and describe the additional
conditions in detail.
Under the Industrial Property Law, the information accompanying the patent application must
include a description of the invention which discloses the invention clearly and completely enough for
it to be evaluated by someone skilled in the art (Articles 46 and 50).
The description of the invention must contain the name of the invention and the following
information:
• The technological sector to which the invention relates or in which it is to be applied;
• any prior technology known to the applicant that might facilitate the understanding
and examination of the invention;
• references to previous documents and publications relating to the state of the art;
• a description of the invention in terms such that the technical problem and the
solution offered by the invention may be understood;
• the advantages of the invention over the previous technology;
• a description of the accompanying drawings;
• a description of the best method of practi cal implementation of the invention known
to the applicant, with examples and references to the drawings;  and
• an explanation of how the invention is capable of industrial application and how it
can be produced and used.
Where the invention relates to biological material and cannot be implemented, as described,
by a person skilled in the art, and the material is not available to the public, the description of the
invention must be accompanied by a deposit of the ma terial in question.  In this case the application
must indicate the name and address of the depositary institution, the date of deposit and the serial
number assigned to the deposit by the institution.
The deposit of material will be valid for patent granting purposes only if it is made in such a
way as to enable any interested party to obtain samples of the material from the date of publication of
the patent application, at the latest.IP/Q/HND/1, IP/Q2/HND/1,
IP/Q3/HND/1, IP/Q4/HND/1
Page 29
33. Please describe if your legislation provides for limited exceptions to the exclusive rights
conferred by a patent.  If affirmative, please make a reference to relevant legislation.
Under Articles 18 and 19 of the Industrial Property Law, the rights granted to the patent
owner may only be asserted against acts performed by third parties for industrial or commercial
purposes.  These rights may not be asserted against:
• Acts performed exclusively in a private environment and for non-commercial
purposes;
• acts performed for experimental, scientific research or teaching purposes relating to
the subject-matter of the patented invention;  and
• the acts referred to in Article 5 of the Paris Convention for the Protection of Industrial
Property.
Nor may the rights of the patent owner be asserted in respect of patented products or products
obtained by a patented process once those products have been lawfully introduced into national orinternational trade by the patent owner or his licensees.
34. Please explain whether or not your legislatio n provides for compulsory licensing. If so,
please explain in detail the conditions under which a compulsory licence may be granted.  In
particular, please explain how your national le gislation considers individual merits in the
authorization of such use.
Under the Honduran legislation, the use of a pa tent, without the consent of the owner, may be
authorized for reasons of public interest, national emergency, national security, nutrition or public
health.  Such use may also be authorized where the patent has not been worked on the nationalterritory for four years following the filing of the application or for three years following the granting
of the patent, whichever period expires later (Articles 66 and 70 of the Industrial Property Law).
Article 31 of the TRIPS Agreement lays down a series of conditions which must be satisfied
whenever a compulsory licence is issued.  In compliance with these provisions, the HonduranIndustrial Property Law stipulates that:
(a) A person applying for a compulsory licence must show that he (1) has previously
sought to obtain a contractual licence from the patent owner; and (2) has been unable
to obtain such a licence on reasonable conditions and within a reasonable period of
time (Article 67, first paragraph);
(b) where a licence is requested for a patent claiming any form of semi-conductor
technology, it will be issued solely for public non-commercial use for the benefit of a
public authority or someone acting on the latter’s behalf, or to remedy a practice
determined to be anti-competitive (Article 67, second paragraph);
(c) compulsory licences are granted predominantly for the supply of the domestic market
(Article 67(1));
(d) when a compulsory licence is issued, the amount and form of the payment to be made
by the licensee is determined on the basis of the extent of exploitation of the licensedinvention and the economic value of the licence (Article 67(2));IP/Q/HND/1, IP/Q2/HND/1,
IP/Q3/HND/1, IP/Q4/HND/1
Page 30
(e) a compulsory licence may be revoked, at the request of an interested party, where the
circumstances that led to its being issued cease to exist (Article 68, first paragraph);
(f) a compulsory licence granted for failure to work the invention may not be exclusive,
nor may it be transferred or sub-licensed, and it may not be assigned except with the
enterprise or establishment, or with such part of the enterprise or establishment, in
which the invention is being industrially exploited (Article 68, second paragraph);
(g) as regards licences for second patents, the following additional conditions apply:
(i) Such a licence will only be granted if the invention claimed in the second
patent involves a technical advance of considerable economic significance in
relation to the invention protected by the first patent;
(ii) a compulsory licence may be granted for the second patent, at the request of
the owner of the first patent;  and
(iii) such a licence may not be assigned, transferred or sub-licensed without the
simultaneous assignment, transfer or sublicensing of the second patent
(Article 69).
(h) With respect to any of the above cases, appeals may be lodged with the Ministry of
Industry and Commerce against decisions of the Registry and the Ministry’s rulings
will be subject to judicial review, in accordance with the provisions of Article 149 of
the Industrial Property Law and Articles 137 to 140 of the Law on AdministrativeProcedure.
35. Please explain how your legislation explicitly ensures that a proposed user has made
efforts to obtain authorization from the righ t holder on reasonable commercial terms and
conditions and that such efforts have not been successful within a reasonable period of time.  In
this context, how do you define "reasonable period of time".  Please also explain how your
legislation ensures that the use of a compulsory  licence shall be author ized predominantly for
the supply to the domestic market of the Member authorizing such use.
Article 67 of the Industrial Property Law stipulates only that anyone requesting a compulsory
licence must show that he has previously sought to obtain a contractual licence from the patent owner
and, moreover, that he has been unable to obtain  one on reasonable commercial terms and conditions.
Among the conditions applicable to compulsory licences, in Article 67(1) of the Law it is
stipulated that licences are granted predominantly for the supply of the domestic market.  A
compulsory licence may be revoked by the Intellectual Property Registry if the circumstances that led
to its being granted have ceased to exist and are unlikely to recur and, moreover, may be modified, atthe request of one of the parties, if justified by new facts or circumstances, particularly where the
patent owner has granted contractual licences on term s more favourable than those accorded to the
beneficiary of the compulsory licence.
36. Please state if your legislation grants addi tional protection for innovations after the
20 years of patent protection has lapsed.
Under Honduran law, patents are granted for a term of twenty (20) years from the filing of the
application.   This period cannot be extended (Article 15 of the Industrial Property Law).IP/Q/HND/1, IP/Q2/HND/1,
IP/Q3/HND/1, IP/Q4/HND/1
Page 31
37. Please explain how your legislation provide s for the enhanced patent protection of
patents or patent applications pending on 1 January 1995.
The Honduran Industrial Property Law was published on 29 January 2000 and entered into
force 20 days later.  The previous law was promulgated in 1993 and envisaged the patentability of allinventions, whatever the field of technology, except in the cases mentioned in Articles 5(9) and 7 of
the law in force and biological material that exists in nature and its replicates.   The term of protection
provided was 20 years.   Accordingly, the Honduran law does not contain any provisions relating to
Articles 70.2 and 70.8(b) of the TRIPS Agreement.
38. Please explain how your legislation provides for the reversal of the burden of proof in
relation to process patents.
According to Article 162 of the Industrial Property Law, where a patent protects a process for
obtaining a new product and the product is produced by a third party, in the absence of proof to the
contrary, the product is assumed to have been obtained by the patented process.
G. L
AYOUT -DESIGNS (TOPOGRAPHIES ) OF INTEGRATED CIRCUITS
39. Please describe how your legislation protects topographies.
Honduras has not yet adopted any specific provisions to regulate the protection of
topographies, but protection is granted for a term of ten years from the date of first commercialexploitation of the design, as required by Article 38.2 of the TRIPS Agreement, which forms part of
the Honduran legislation, having been approved and ratified as an Annex to the Marrakesh Agreement
Establishing the World Trade Organization (WTO).
40. Please explain what protection your national  legislation grants to right holders against
the unlawful importation, sale or distribution for commercial purposes of topographies
including integrated circuits or other articles in which a topography is incorporated in
accordance with Article 36 of the TRIPS Agreement.
In accordance with Article 36 of the TRIPS Agreement, the holder of the rights in a
topography may oppose the importation, sale or commercial distribution of the protected layout-
design, an integrated circuit in which the protected layout-design is incorporated, or an articleincorporating the integrated circuit.  This provision can be applied directly, even though there is no
corresponding specific legislation.   This means that the right holder can request the application of the
measures he considers necessary to protect his rights, including the precautionary measures for which
the Industrial Property Law provides.
41. Please explain how your legislation provi des for the derogation from Article 36 as
specified in Article 37 of the TRIPS Agreement where a person has no knowledge or reasonable
grounds to know when acquiring an integrated circuit or an article incorporating such an
integrated circuit that it contains an unlawful topography.
Article 37 of the TRIPS Agreement allows Members not to consider unlawful the
importation, sale or commercial distribution of a protected layout-design, whether incorporated in an
integrated circuit or in an article incorporating su ch an integrated circuit, if the person performing
such acts did not know and had no reasonable ground to know, when acquiring the integrated circuit
or article incorporating such circuit, that he was acquiring an unlawfully reproduced layout-design.
This means that such acts do not constitute infringements, as long as the person has not been notifiedthat the layout-design imported or offered for sale was unlawfully reproduced.IP/Q/HND/1, IP/Q2/HND/1,
IP/Q3/HND/1, IP/Q4/HND/1
Page 32
Under Article 37, Members may provide that, after a person has been notified of the
unlawfulness of the layout-design, that person may pe rform any of the acts with respect to the stock
on hand or ordered before such notification (use it up, for example), but shall be liable to pay the right
holder a sum equivalent to the royalty payable under a contractual licence.  Members are required toincorporate this provision in their specific legislation, but there is nothing to prevent the right holder
and an innocent infringer from arriving at an agreement in this respect.
42. Please state the term of protection granted by your legislation to topographies.
See the response to question 39.
H. P
ROTECTION OF UNDISCLOSED INFORMATION
43. Please explain whether or not your legislatio n grants a defined period of time for the
protection of undisclosed information.  If so, please give the time span.
Under Article 74 of the Industrial Property Law, trade secrets are protected indefinitely if the
constituent information is not, as a body or in the precise configuration and assembly of its
components, generally known among or readily accessible to persons within the circles that normally
deal with such information and, moreover, has been subject to reasonable steps by the lawful holder to
keep it secret.
If the information relates to secret data or th e like submitted to the authority responsible for
approving the marketing of pharmaceutical or agri cultural chemical products that contain a new
chemical component, such information will be pr otected against unfair commercial use by third
parties (Article 77) and, moreover, against disclosure, except where disclosure is necessary to protect
the public or where appropriate steps have been taken to ensure that the secret data or information willnot be the subject of unfair commercial use by third parties (Article 78).
44. Please explain how your legislation defines undisclosed information.
The Industrial Property Law does not define undisclosed information.  However, under
Article 73 of the Industrial Property Law, any undisclosed information within a person’s control that
can be used for a productive, industrial or commercial activity and is capable of being transmitted to athird party is considered to be a trade secret.
45. Please explain how your legislation de fines data submitted to governments or
governmental agencies.
Although there is no definition of this kind of information as such, Article 77 of the Industrial
Property Law refers to it as any secret data or information that may be required in a proceeding before
a national authority competent to issue licences or permits or approve the marketing of a
pharmaceutical or agricultural chemical product that contains a new chemical component.
I. 
ENFORCEMENT
46. Please describe how your legislation provides for effective action against infringement of
intellectual property rights.
To ensure the enforcement of intellectual property rights, both the Industrial Property Law
and the Law on Copyright and Related Rights allow the right holder to bring an administrative, civil
or criminal action to protect his rights against infringement, or to prevent or halt an infringement and
avoid its consequences.IP/Q/HND/1, IP/Q2/HND/1,
IP/Q3/HND/1, IP/Q4/HND/1
Page 33
Civil proceedings follow the trial procedure laid down in the Code of Civil Procedure
(Articles 160 of the Industrial Property Law and 173 of the Law on Copyright and Related Rights),
without prejudice to the right of the parties to bring a corresponding action under the administrativeprocedure.  In criminal cases, it is for the Public Prosecutor to prosecute the infringer, provided that
the holder or licensee of the infringed rights initiates the prosecution by filing a complaint for
violation directly with the Prosecutor's Office or with the competent courts (Article 152.1, 2 and 3 of
the Code of Criminal Procedure).
Honduran legislation further provides for the possibility of requesting, even prior to  any of
the above actions, precautionary measures or orders to protect intellectual property rights, to preventinfringement, or to obtain and preserve evidence (Articles 163 and 165 of the Industrial Property Law
and Articles 174 and 178 of the Law on Copyright and Related Rights).  Border measures suspending
the importation or exportation of goods that injure or infringe the rights of the holder of an industrial
property right or copyright or related rights may also be ordered (Articles 165(4) of the Industrial
Property Law and 174 of the Law on Copyright and Related Rights).
47. Please explain whether or not your legislation provides for a mechanism to appeal to
judicial bodies against final administrative decisions.
Under Article 149 of the Industrial Property Law, all final decisions of the Directorate
General for Intellectual Property, including those imposing administrative sanctions underArticles 167 and 168 of the Law, are subject to applications for reconsideration by the head of the
Directorate and appeals to the Ministry of Industry and Trade, all in accordance with the provisions of
the Law on Administrative Procedure. Similar remedies are available in administrative proceedings
for infringements of rights recognized by the Law on Copyright and Related Rights.
48. Please describe how your legislation authorizes judges to order production of evidence
by the opposing party.  Please give precise information on what measures are taken to ensure
the protection of confidential information.
Neither the Industrial Property Law nor the Law on Copyright and Related Rights contains
any special provisions regarding the power of the j udicial authorities to order one of the parties to
proceedings to produce evidence in its possession.  However, this is covered by other provisionsresidually applicable to intellectual property such as those of the Law on Administrative Procedure
and the Code of Civil Procedure, which, however, are limited to documentary evidence.
Basically, if one of the parties to the proceedings needs to make use of a document which it
claims to be under the control of its opponent, it must submit a copy thereof or, at least, suchinformation as it possesses concerning its contents and, moreover, show that its opponent holds or has
held the document in question.  In this case the court will order that the other party be required to
hand over the document within the time-limit fixed by the court itself;  if it fails to do so and produces
no counter-information, the court will decide to c onsider the text of the document supplied by the
requesting party to be accurate or declare that the data provided concerning its contents will beconsidered accurate in the judgement.
If the evidence concerning the existence of a document lying in the control of the opposing
party is conflicting, the court will reserve the aforesaid decision for the final judgement, on which
occasion it may draw from the statements of the parties and the evidence submitted the conclusions itthinks fit.IP/Q/HND/1, IP/Q2/HND/1,
IP/Q3/HND/1, IP/Q4/HND/1
Page 34
As regards the requirement that measures guaranteeing the protection of confidential
information must be taken in all cases where ev idence is produced, Honduran legislation contains
various provisions obliging the judicial authorities and administration officials to abide by this
requirement in respect of information supplied under a guarantee of confidentiality, as an exception tothe general rule of public disclosure of administrative acts (Articles 111 and 222.3 of the Courts
(Organization and Competence) Law.
Likewise, although Article 174 of  the Code of Criminal Procedure and Articles 155 and 156
of the Code of Civil Procedure enunciate the principl e that acts and proceedings of the courts of the
Republic are public, they admit as exceptions to that principle cases in which, by legal order or on
grounds of public morality or security, such acts and proceedings must be kept confidential.  Thus, theaforementioned Articles empower the courts to declare, in very special cases and under their strict
responsibility, acts or proceedings confidential.
49. Please quote provisions of your legislation that authorize judges to order a defendant to
desist from an infringement .
Pursuant to Articles 163 and 165 of the I ndustrial Property Law and Articles 173 and 174 of
the Law on Copyright and Related Rights, the authorities may order, depending on the case and
bearing in mind the need for proportionality in terms of the seriousness of the infringement, whatever
measures are required to ensure the cessation of the infringing acts and to prevent the consequencesand avoid a repetition thereof, including the pr ohibition of importation and exportation of goods or
materials and their disposal outside the channels of commerce.  According to express provisions of
both laws, in civil and criminal proceedings the courts may also order, as a precautionary measure, the
immediate cessation of the use, application and marketing of the infringing goods, or the measures
necessary to avoid the continuation or repetition of the infringement (Articles 270 of the Code of CivilProcedure and 55 of the Criminal Code).
50. Please quote what provisions of your legislation authorize judges to order the payment
to the right holder of adequate damages to compensate the injury he suffered.
Articles 1351, 1357, 1360, 2236 and 2237 of the Civil Code and 191 of the Code of Civil
Procedure establish the general principle or rule that anyone causing harm or prejudice to another,
whether intentionally or through neglect or carelessness, is required to make good the act, exceptwhere it can be demonstrated that the harm or prejudice was the result of inexcusable negligence or
fault on the part of the victim.  It is also stipulated that, in the event of the award of damages, the
ruling shall specify the exact amount.  If this is not possible, the ruling shall establish at least the basis
for determining the assessment of the points at issue or for the fixing of the amount by experts.
Article 163(2) of the Industrial Property Law establishes that, in the case of infringement of
rights recognized under the Law, the competent au thority may be requested to order the award of
damages.  A similar rule is laid down in Article 175 of the Law on Copyright and Related Rights.
51. Please quote what provisions of your legislation authorize judges to order the payment
of the right holder's expenses by the infringer.
As to the matter of attorneys' fees, Articles 9 of the Code of Civil Procedure and 263 of the
Courts (Organization and Competence) Law sets out the general rule that each party to proceedings
shall be directly liable for costs in respect of actions it takes or requests.  On the other hand, the rulealso establishes that, in the event of an order to pa y costs, the losing party shall compensate the other
for all the necessary expenses it has caused.  Articles 192, 242, 243 and 244 of the Code of CivilIP/Q/HND/1, IP/Q2/HND/1,
IP/Q3/HND/1, IP/Q4/HND/1
Page 35
Procedure specify the general obligation upon the court, in its final ruling, to order the losing party to
reimburse the other for the costs that the latter has incurred.
52. Please explain if and how judges have the authority to order that infringing goods are
placed outside channels of commerce or destroyed.
The withdrawal of infringing goods from the channels of commerce may be ordered as a
definitive measure (in the judgment that closes the proceedings) or as a precautionary measure, as
provided for in Articles 163 and 165 of the Industrial Property Law and Articles 174 and 178 of the
Law on Copyright and Related Rights.  In conformity  with the above provisions, the goods resulting
from the infringement and the means or implements  used to commit the infringement may also be
destroyed.  Likewise, Article 169 of the Industrial Property Law provides for goods displayingunlawful distinctive signs, advertising materials and materials or implements used specifically to
commit the infringement to be seized and held by the competent authority pending the outcome of the
proceedings.
53. Please quote what provisions of your legislation authorize judges to indemnify a
defendant in the event of abuse by the plaintiff.
Under Articles 294 to 298 of the Code of Civil Procedure and Articles 120 to 136 of the
Courts (Organization and Competence) Law, whoever obtains enforcement of a precautionary
measure or order shall be liable for any damages and prejudice caused to the party against whom themeasure has been taken and for any resulting costs, if the application is not filed within the prescribed
time-limit, if the precautionary measure is revoked, or if the application is declared inadmissible.
To guarantee that this liability is met, where a precautionary measure or order is requested
and prior to its application the court may require the posting of security or other assurance sufficientto prevent abuse and protect both the party against whom the measure has been taken and the
authorities themselves against such damages and prejudice as might ensue.
The authorities that have ordered such a measure shall be exempt from all liability unless they
have acted in bad faith, in which case those responsible may be subject to penalties such as
imprisonment, suspension and the payment of damages.
54. Please explain how your legislation implements Article 50 of the TRIPS Agreement.
Pursuant to Article 165 of the Industrial Property Law, the courts may be requested to adopt
such immediate precautionary measures as are necessary to prevent or halt infringement of a protected
right, to avoid its consequences, to obtain or preser ve evidence, and to ensure the effectiveness of the
action brought and any award of damages.  Such measures may be requested prior to, following or
concurrently with the initiation of proceedings.  Where ordered before the initiation of proceedings,
the measures may be implemented inaudita altera parte .
Without prejudice to other measures applicable under the terms of the Code of Criminal
Procedure, the court may order:
• The immediate cessation of the infringing acts;
• the preventive seizure, withholding or deposit of the infringing goods and the means
used predominantly to commit the infringement;IP/Q/HND/1, IP/Q2/HND/1,
IP/Q3/HND/1, IP/Q4/HND/1
Page 36
• the posting by the alleged infringer of security or other assurance to cover any award
of damages;  and
• the suspension of importation or exportation of the goods or means predominantly
used to commit the infringement.
Likewise, goods displaying unlawful distinctive signs, advertising materials referring to such
signs and materials and implements used to comm it the infringement shall be detained or seized
pending the outcome of the proceedings, as stipul ated in Article 169 of the Industrial Property Law.
As regards copyright and related rights, Article 174 of the relevant Law establishes that the
holder of the corresponding rights may ask the judicial authorities, as a precautionary measure, to
seize:
• Any work, publication or copies fraudulently reproduced;
• the proceeds obtained through the disposal or hiring of such works, publications or
copies;
• the proceeds from theatrical, cinematographic or orchestral performances, or any
other similar work;  and
• copies of works or of sound recordings which may be reasonably assumed to have
been produced or imported without the authorization of the right holder, together with
the packaging of those copies, such means as may have been used to produce them,
and the business documents, reports or papers relating to the said copies, as well as
the deposit of income resulting from such activities.
Likewise, an order may be issued to suspend th e free circulation of goods that may reasonably
be assumed to be unlawful, in which case the provisions of the Customs Code apply.
Pursuant to the Law on Copyright and Related Rights, the judicial authorities may further be
requested to prohibit or suspend the public showing or performance of a work or phonogram that has
been produced without due authorization by the right holder (Article 176), and to suspend a theatrical
performance or the performance of instrumental or vocal music broadcast without the author's consent
(Article 180).
The person requesting any of these measure must have instituted the relevant legal
proceedings and provided sufficient guarantees to insure against such harm as he may cause the
defendant (Article 177).
The competent court must immediately decree the precautionary measures requested, in
accordance with the provisions of the Code of Civil Procedure (Article 178).
55. Please identify the competent authorities in your jurisdiction who receive requests from
right holders for an application to suspend the release of counterfeit goods by the customs
authorities.
Under Articles 160 and 165 of the Industrial Property Law and 173 of the Law on Copyright
and Related Rights, measures of this kind may be requested in the civil courts.  At the same time,
under the customs legislation, any goods or products that infringe an intellectual property right maybe seized at the border by the country’s customs authorities.IP/Q/HND/1, IP/Q2/HND/1,
IP/Q3/HND/1, IP/Q4/HND/1
Page 37
The customs procedure may be initiated ex officio or at the request of a party, if it is apparent
that the goods infringe an intellectual property right or if the aggrieved right holder has sufficient
evidence to file a complaint on the me rits with the relevant authorities.
In both instances the customs authorities will order the border measures at the time of
clearance, suspending the release and admission of the goods or the export process for a period of
10 working days.
56. Please indicate whether or not procedures are available to suspend the exporting of
counterfeit goods.
In accordance with the above-mentioned provisions, The holder of a protected intellectual
property right may request the suspension, as a provisional measure, of the release and admission of
goods or of the export process, provided that he:
(a) Proves he is the holder of the right allegedly infringed;
(b) posts security sufficient to cover such damage and prejudice as might be caused to the
party against which the measure is enforced;
(c) provides all the information required to identify the allegedly infringing goods;(d) identifies the importer or exporter;(e) describes the unlawful goods which, it is presumed, are due to be imported or
exported;
(f) identifies the customs office through which the goods are to enter, indicating the
likely date of entry or exit of the goods and the means of transport used;  and
(g) any other information that the customs authorities deem necessary.
When the customs authorities have taken the ne cessary action, they will inform the interested
parties, within one working day at most, of the detention of the goods and will make the latter
available in a warehouse designated for the purpos e. In so doing, the authorities will draw up an
official report that includes the following:
(a) Name and rank of the official in charge of the procedure;(b) description, nature and other characteristics of the goods;(c) decision and grounds for ordering the suspension of the free circulation of goods of
foreign origin;
(d) notification of the above to the party concerned;  and(e) place where the goods are to be deposited and held at the disposal of the competent
authority.
The person subject to the above measure must respond within a period of 10 working days
from the date of the notification of suspension, during which he may submit appropriate evidence,IP/Q/HND/1, IP/Q2/HND/1,
IP/Q3/HND/1, IP/Q4/HND/1
Page 38
pleas and grounds for defence in relation to the complaint against him and may post an indemnity
bond sufficient to cover any damage or injury that might be caused by the lifting of the measure.
The competent authority will give a final ruling on the border measures proceedings and place
the security, guarantee or indemnity bond at the disposal of the party in whose favour it has ruled.
The length and cost of proceedings will depend on the complexity of the case.  The person subject to
suspension of the release of the goods into free circulation may provide an indemnity bond to have the
measure lifted.  Otherwise, it will be lifted in the final ruling of the authority that determines the fate
of the goods.
In all matters pertaining to border measures, the applicable provisions are Articles 1, 2, 3 and
57 of the Customs Law.
57. Please quote what provisions of your legisl ation authorize the competent authorities to
order the destruction or disposal of infringing goods.
The withdrawal of infringing goods from the channels of commerce may be ordered as a
definitive measure (in the judgment that closes the proceedings) or as a precautionary measure, as
provided for in Articles 163 and 165 of the Industrial Property Law and Articles 174 and 178 of the
Law on Copyright and Related Rights.  In conformity  with the above provisions, the goods resulting
from the infringement and the means or implements  used to commit the infringement may also be
destroyed.
58. Please indicate whether or not your legislation provides for a de minimis imports
exception.
Border measures may not be applied to goods in transit or goods of a non-commercial nature
imported as part of travelers’ personal effects.
59. Please explain how your legislation implements Article 61 of the TRIPS Agreement.
In criminal cases it is for the Office of the At torney General to institute criminal proceedings
against those responsible for the infringement, prov ided that the holder or licensee of the infringed
rights has initiated the prosecution by filing a complaint for violation (Articles 16 and 152.1, 2 and 3of the Code of Criminal Procedure).
The courts competent to try criminal cases of infringement of an intellectual property right are
those that have jurisdiction in the place where the infringement was committed (Article 38 of the
Code of Criminal Procedure).
As regards criminal procedure, please refer to the responses to questions 22, 23, 24 and 25 of
the Checklist of Issues on Enforcement submitted by  Honduras to the Secretariat of the World Trade
Organization (WTO) (document IP/N/6/HND/1).
Infringements of any of the intellectual property rights recognized under the relevant laws are
subject to such criminal procedures and penalties as are prescribed under the classification of
infringing conduct set out in Articles 284 to 253 of the Criminal Code.
The aforementioned Articles of the Criminal Code stipulate a term of imprisonment of three
to six years for anyone found guilty of serious infringement of an intellectual property right and a
fine, to be determined by the court, ranging in amount from 50,000 to 100,000 lempiras, without
prejudice to any fines or administrative penalties imposed by other authorities.IP/Q/HND/1, IP/Q2/HND/1,
IP/Q3/HND/1, IP/Q4/HND/1
Page 39
Article 299.3 of the Criminal Code specifies, moreover, that anyone found guilty of an act
classified as unfair competition under the provisions of the Commercial Code, other special laws or
international agreements shall be punishable by th ree (3) to five (5) years’ imprisonment and a fine
ranging from 50,000 to 100,000 lempiras.
In addition to the penalties described above, in criminal intellectual property proceedings the
provisions already mentioned in Honduras' response to question 24 of the Checklist of Issues on
Enforcement may be applied.  Without distinction as  to the protected right, these provisions specify
the possibility of ordering the seizure, forfeiture or destruction of infringing goods and of any
materials and implements used predominantly to commit the infringement.
IV. REPLIES TO THE QUESTIONS POSED BY JAPAN
A. COPYRIGHT AND RELATED RIGHTS
1. Please explain exceptions to or exemptio ns from the national treatment and most-
favoured-nation treatment obligations under the legislation on copyright and related rights, ifany, as permitted in Articles 3 and 4 of the TRIPS Agreement.
Article 3 of the TRIPS Agreement provides that Members may avail themselves of exceptions
to the principle of national treatment, as provided for in the Berne and Rome Conventions.
Under the terms of the Berne Convention, Members may apply a different treatment in the
following cases:
(a) In the case of works of applied art protected in the country of origin solely as
industrial designs and models, it is permitted to afford protection not extendingbeyond that provided for industrial designs and models under the legislation of the
country where protection is claimed, except where no such special protection exists in
that country, in which case the works in question shall be protected as artistic works
(Article 2.7 of the Berne Convention).  Under Honduran legislation, Article 4 of the
relevant Law establishes that the rights of foreign authors not resident in the country
or whose works have been published for the first time outside the country shall be
protected in accordance with the international agreements to which Honduras is party.The above exception would therefore only apply to foreign works in whose country
of origin works of applied art are protected solely as industrial designs (industrial
designs and models).
(b) Where a country outside the Berne Union affords more limited protection than that
provided for in the Convention, the protection given to the works of authors who are,
at the date of the first publication thereof, nationals of that country and are not
habitually resident in one of the countries of the Union may be restricted to the level
of protection granted by the non-Member country (Article 6 of the Berne
Convention).  The Convention requires the restriction to be notified to the DirectorGeneral of the World Intellectual Property Organization, and Article 3 of the TRIPS
Agreement stipulates that notification shall also be given to the Council for TRIPS.
Honduras has not made use of this possibility so far.
(c) Where the term of protection in the country in which protection is claimed is longer
than that stipulated in the legislation of the country of origin of the work, it is
permitted to establish that the term shall not exceed that fixed in the country of origin.IP/Q/HND/1, IP/Q2/HND/1,
IP/Q3/HND/1, IP/Q4/HND/1
Page 40
(Article 7.8 of the Berne Convention).  As the period of protection laid down in
Honduran legislation exceeds the minimum period prescribed under the TRIPS
Agreement, Article 44 of the Law on Copyright and Related Rights specifies that, in
the case of works by foreign authors published for the first time outside the country,the term of protection shall not exceed that recognized by the law of the country in
which the work has been published.  However, if the period of protection in the
country where the work has been published is longer than that granted under
Honduran law, the provisions of the latter shall prevail.
(d) In the case of original works of art and original manuscripts of writers and composers
("droit de suite "), the Convention allows for the right to interest in sales subsequent to
the first transfer by the author of the work to apply solely where legislation in the
country to which the author belongs so permits (Article 14 ter (2) of the Berne
Convention).  In accordance with the provisions of Article 4 of the Law on Copyright
and Related Rights, in the case of foreign works such a right may be claimed only
where it is recognized under the legislation of the country of origin of the author.
As regards the rights covered by the Rome Convention, the treaty provides for the possibility
of according a different treatment to foreigners in the following situations:
Phonograms
(a) In the case of secondary use of phonograms, it is permitted to grant the relevant right
solely to producers that are nationals of a Contracting State;
(b) in the case of producers of phonograms that are nationals of another Contracting
State, the extent and the term of protection may be restricted to those fixed by that
State.
Broadcasting organizations
The Convention allows such organizations to deny the right of communication to the public
of television broadcasts to Contracting States having declared that they will not apply such a right.
Since Article 8 of the Law on Copyright and Related Rights stipulates that protection of
phonograms and broadcasts the holders of rights in which are foreigners not resident in the country
shall be afforded in accordance with the internat ional agreements to which Honduras is party, the
rights laid down in Articles 14.2 and 14.3 of the TRIPS Agreement apply to Honduran nationals andforeigners alike.  In the case of secondary use of phonograms, however, the aforementioned right is
granted solely to nationals of countries guaranteeing the same protection for Honduran right holders.
As to the term of protection, since Honduras provides for a period in excess of that prescribed under
the TRIPS Agreement it also reserves the right to  restrict the term of protection for foreign
phonograms to that applicable in the country of origin (Article 44 of the Law on Copyright and
Related Rights).
V. REPLIES TO THE QUESTIONS POSED BY SWITZERLAND
A. 
GEOGRAPHICAL INDICATIONS
1. Please explain in detail how your legislation provides protection for geographical
indications.IP/Q/HND/1, IP/Q2/HND/1,
IP/Q3/HND/1, IP/Q4/HND/1
Page 41
In respect of the obligation set forth in Article 22.2 of the TRIPS Agreement, Article 123 of
the Honduran Industrial Property Law establishes that a geographical indication may not be used in
commerce, with respect to a good or  service, in the following cases:
(a) Where the geographical indication is misleading as to the origin of the good or
service;
(b) where use of the indication may give rise to confusion or create unjustified
expectations among the public as to the origin, provenance, characteristics or qualities
of the good or service.
Likewise, in listing the signs that may constitute a trademark, Honduran legislation
establishes that a geographical indication may not be registered as a trademark unless its association
with a good or service is sufficiently arbitrary and distinctive and its use is not likely to give rise to
confusion or create false or unjustified expectations among the public as to the origin, provenance,
characteristics or qualities of the good or service (Article 82 of the Industrial Property Law).
B. PATENTS
2. Does your legislation grant patent protection for all categories of products or are there
any exceptions?  If so, please explain in detail what kind of exceptions exist and how they
comply with Article 27 of the TRIPS Agreement.  In particular, is patent protection granted forall pharmaceutical products?
Under Article 6 of the Honduran Industrial Property Law, an invention shall be patentable
where it is capable of industrial application, is novel and involves an inventive step; this includes
pharmaceutical products.  The sole exceptions are set forth in Article 7 of the Law, which stipulatesthat the following shall be excluded from patentability:
(a) Essentially biological processes for the production or reproduction of plants, animals
or their varieties, including genetic processes or processes relating to material capable
of duplicating itself, directly or indirectly, when such processes consist in selecting or
isolating available biological material and letting it act under natural conditions;  and
(b) plant varieties and species and animal breeds and species.
In the case of plant varieties, however, protection is afforded in compliance with the 1991 Act
of the UPOV Convention, which is incorporated in the draft Law for the Protection of New Varieties
of Plants, currently tabled for approval by the Sovereign National Congress.  The text of the draft Lawis attached (Spanish only).
Diagnostic, therapeutic and surgical methods are not regarded as inventions (Article 5.9 of the
Industrial Property Law).
Follow-up question
Please explain in detail how the following excep tion to patentability, foreseen in Art. 7 of
your Law on Industrial Property, complies with Article 27 TRIPS Agreement prohibiting
discrimination as regards patentability between different fields of technology: "[...] incluyendo
los procesos genéticos o relativos a material capaz de conducir su propria aplicación, por sí
mismo o por cualquier otra manera indirecta, cua ndo consistan en seleccionar o aislar material
biológico disponible y dejarlo que actúe en cond iciones naturales".  Does this exception meanIP/Q/HND/1, IP/Q2/HND/1,
IP/Q3/HND/1, IP/Q4/HND/1
Page 42
that inventions relating to such  subject matter, even if fulfilling the conditions of patentability,
i.e. novelty, inventive step and industrial applicability are nevertheless excluded from
patentability according to your law?
Pursuant to Article 27.1 of the TRIPS Agreement, the general rule is that patents shall be
available for any inventions, whether products or processes, in all fields of technology, provided that
they are new, involve an inventive step and are capable of industrial application.  However,
Articles 27.2 and 27.3 provide that Members may exclude from patentability certain inventions,
including essentially biological processes for the production of plants or animals other than non-
biological and microbiological processes.  The exception allowed by Article 7 of the Industrial
Property Law refers to essentially biological proc esses for the production or reproduction of plants,
animals or their varieties, and is therefore consistent with the provisions of Article 27.3 of the TRIPS
Agreement.
3. Does your legislation, in accordance with Article 27.1 in combination with Article 31 of
the TRIPS Agreement, consider importation as “working” a patent (and therefore precludecompulsory licensing, if a product is being imported)?
Under the terms of Article 65 of the Industrial Property Law, exploitation of a patent shall be
understood to mean the following:
(a) Where the patent has been granted for a product, supply of the domestic market, in
keeping with the demand for the product, whether by way of local production or by
way of importation, or both;
(b) where the patent has been granted for a process for obtaining a product, supply of the
domestic market, in keeping with the demand for the product thus obtained, by way
of use of the process either domestically or abroad;  and
(c) where the patent has been granted for any other process not covered by the preceding
paragraph, use of such a process, on a commercial scale, in Honduras.
If, after a period of three years following the grant of the patent or of four years following the
filing of the application, whichever is the longer, the patent is not being worked on national territory,
anyone who demonstrates the capacity to exploit that patent may apply for a compulsory licence
(Article 66 of the Law on Intellectual Property), except where insufficient supply of the market is due
to circumstances beyond the control of the patent owner.
Prior to the issuing of the compulsory licence, the owner of the patent is allowed a period of
two years to begin exploiting the product or the patented process (Article 66 of the Industrial Property
Law).
A compulsory licence may be revoked at the request of a party, where the circumstances that
gave rise to it no longer obtain (Article 68 of the Industrial Property Law).
4. Does your legislation make the granting of  a compulsory licence subject to all the
conditions enumerated in Article 31 of the TRIPS Agreement?  Please cite the relevant
provisions.
Article 31 of the TRIPS Agreement establishes a set of requirements for the issuing of a
compulsory licence.  In compliance with these conditions, the Honduran Industrial Property Law
stipulates that:IP/Q/HND/1, IP/Q2/HND/1,
IP/Q3/HND/1, IP/Q4/HND/1
Page 43
(a) The person applying for a compulsory licence shall provide evidence that he (1) has
previously sought to obtain a contractual licence from the patent owner and (2) has
been unable to obtain such a licence under reasonable conditions and within areasonable period of time (Article 67.1);
(b) where the licence is requested for a patent claiming any form of semi-conductor
technology, it shall be issued solely for public non-commercial use for the benefit of a
public authority or someone acting on the latter's behalf, or to remedy a practice
deemed to be anti-competitive (Article 67.2);
(c) compulsory licences shall be granted predominantly for the supply of the domestic
market (Article 67.1);
(d) upon the issuing of a compulsory licence, remuneration of the licensee shall be
established in an amount and a form to be determined on the basis of the scale ofexploitation of the licensed invention and of the economic value of the licence
(Article 67.3);
(e) a compulsory licence may be revoked at the request of the interested party, where the
circumstances that led to it cease to exist (Article 68.1);
(f) a compulsory licence may not be exclusive, nor may it be assigned or sub-licensed,
and it may not be transferred except with the enterprise or establishment, or with such
part of the enterprise or establishment in which the invention is being industrially
exploited (Article 68.2);
(g) as to licences for second patents, the following further conditions shall apply:
(i) such a licence shall not be granted unless the invention claimed in the second
patent involves a technical advance of considerable economic significance in
relation to the invention protected by the first patent;
(ii) a compulsory licence may be granted for the second patent, at the request of
the owner of the first patent;  and
(iii) such a licence may not be assigned, transferred or sub-licensed without
simultaneous assignment, transfer or sub-licensing of the second patent(Article 69);
(h) appeals may be lodged with the Ministry of Industry and Commerce against
resolutions passed by the Registry with respect to any of the above cases; the
Ministry's rulings are subject to judicial review, in accordance with the provisions ofArticles 139 and 140 of the Law on Admi nistrative Procedure and 149 of the
Industrial Property Law.
5. Does your legislation provide for the principle of the reversal of burden of proof in a
process patent litigation?  Please cite the relevant provisions of law.
Article 162 of the Industrial Property Law establishes that where a patent of invention
protects a process for obtaining a new product and the product is produced by a third party, in the
absence of proof to the contrary, the product shall be assumed to have been obtained by means of the
patented process.  In other words:IP/Q/HND/1, IP/Q2/HND/1,
IP/Q3/HND/1, IP/Q4/HND/1
Page 44
(a) Reversal of the burden of proof is provided for solely in the case of process patent
infringement;
(b) the product obtained by means of the patented process must be new;
(c) the third party manufacturing the new product shall be responsible for proving that
the process used by him to obtain the product is different from the patented process.
In the absence of proof to the contrary, it shall be assumed that the product has been
obtained by means of the patented process.
C. PROTECTION OF UNDISCLOSED INFORMATION
6. Please explain in detail whether your legislation ensures that undisclosed test or other
data submitted by an applicant to the respon sible State agency in the procedure for market
authorization of a pharmaceutical or agrochemical product is protected against disclosure and
against unfair commercial use by a competitor, for example by prohibiting a second applicantfrom relying on, or from referring to the origin al data of the first applicant, when applying
subsequently for market authorization for his ow n product.  Does your legislation provide for
exceptions to this?  If so, under what conditio ns would such exceptions apply?  Does your
legislation set a specific term of protection for undisclosed test or other data of the first
applicant?
Articles 77 and 78 of the Industrial Property Law establish that where it is required to submit
secret data or information to obtain marketing a pproval for a pharmaceutical or agricultural chemical
product, such information shall be protected against:
(a) Unfair use by third parties;
(b) disclosure.
The only exceptions to the above provisions concern the right to disclosure, in the following
situations:
(a) Where disclosure of the information supplied is necessary for the protection of the
public, in which case it is understood that such information may not be used unfairly
by third parties;
(b) in any other case, including that where protection of the public is not the sole
concern, provided that appropriate measures have been taken to ensure that the data
or information supplied is protected against unfair commercial use by third parties.
Article 215 of the Criminal Code provides, moreover, that a term of imprisonment of three to
six years, depending on the circumstances, shall be incurred by anyone who reveals without just causeor uses for his own benefit or that of others a secret learned by virtue of his position, employment,
profession or skills, and thereby causes economic prejudice to the owner of such information.
Follow-up question
Referring to the issue of unfair commercial use of data submitted by an applicant to the
responsible Authorities in the procedure for mark et authorisation of a pharmaceutical or of an
agricultural chemical product, please explain in detail if your legislation explicitly prohibits aIP/Q/HND/1, IP/Q2/HND/1,
IP/Q3/HND/1, IP/Q4/HND/1
Page 45
second applicant from relying on, or from referring to, the original data of the first applicant (in
the absence of any disclosure by the State agen cy), when applying subsequently for market
authorisation for his own product. Does your legislation set a specific term of protection for
undisclosed test or other data of the first applicant?
The Honduran Industrial Property Law stipulates that where the submission of secret data or
information is required in a proceeding before a national authority competent to approve the
marketing or sale of a pharmaceutical or agricultural chemical product containing a new chemical
component, the data shall be protected against unfair commercial use by third parties.  Honduran
legislation does not set any specific term of protection for such data, nor does it include any special
provision that prohibits a second applicant from relying on, or referring to, information supplied bythe first applicant when applying for authorization to market his own product.
In conformity with the country's sanitary regulations, however, information regarding the
safety and efficacy of the product is required where a pharmaceutical product consists of new
molecules not recognized in pharmacopoeias or accepted compendia of proprietary pharmaceuticalsand where an agricultural chemical product contains an unknown active ingredient.
The submission of test data is not required where information on the efficacy and safety of,
and adverse reactions to, the active ingredients is set forth in pharmacopoeias and accepted compendia
of proprietary pharmaceuticals;  the same applies to agricultural chemical products containing knownactive ingredients.
D. 
ENFORCEMENT
7. Please indicate remedies provided by your legislation which constitute effective
deterrents to infringement of intellectual property rights.
Article 41 of the TRIPS Agreement requires domestic legislation to lay down procedures for
the enforcement of intellectual property rights.  Such procedures include:
(a) Measures or remedies to prevent infringements;  and
(b) measures or remedies which constitute deterrents to further infringements.Both types of procedure are provided for under Honduran law.  Among the measures aimed at
preventing infringement or avoiding aggravation of harm incurred as a result of infringement,
domestic legislation stipulates that anyone bringing or about to bring legal action for violation of an
intellectual property right may request the judi cial authority to order immediate precautionary
measures to (a) prevent or halt the infringement, (b) avoid its consequences, (c) obtain or preserve
evidence, or (d) ensure the effectiveness of the action brought or the award of damages (Articles 165
of the Industrial Property Law and 174 of the Law on Copyright and Related Rights).
The measures that may be requested include:
(a) The immediate cessation of the acts constituting an infringement of protected rights;
(b) the seizure or forfeiture of the infringi ng goods and of the means used to commit the
infringement;
(c) the suspension of importation or exportation of the infringing goods and of the means
used to commit the infringement;IP/Q/HND/1, IP/Q2/HND/1,
IP/Q3/HND/1, IP/Q4/HND/1
Page 46
(d) the posting of security to cover compensation for damages.
The above measures may be requested under civil and criminal proceedings (Articles 165 of
the Industrial Property Law and 174 of the Law on Copyright and Related Rights).
Honduran legislation further provides for the institution of criminal proceedings in the event
of infringement of copyright and related rights and the marketing of counterfeit goods.
8. Please describe any new initiatives that are planned to improve enforcement of
intellectual property rights in your country, particularly initiatives relating to enforcementthrough criminal action.
To ensure compliance with the laws and agreements making up its intellectual property
legislation, Honduras has set up an Inter-Institutional Commission against Piracy, which is
responsible for monitoring effective protection of such rights.
The Commission functions on the basis of perman ent and ad hoc links between the following
bodies.
Permanent links:(a) Public Prosecutor's Office (responsible for instituting criminal proceedings in the
event of infringement of intellectual property rights);
(b) Secretariat of Security (in charge of the police authorities responsible for seizing
counterfeit and pirated goods);
(c) Executive Directorate of Revenue (in charge of Honduran Customs);
(d) National Telecommunications Commission (in charge of authorizing the operation of
open and cable television companies and the distribution of programme-carrying
satellite signals);
(e) Supreme Court of Justice (responsible for ensuring the proper administration of
justice in the country);
(f) Honduran Council for Private Enterprise (body representing most domestic
enterprises).
Other bodies contribute to the Commission's work on an ad hoc basis, depending on the right
requiring protection at any given time.
• Regional Offices for Industry and  Commerce
• Consumer Affairs Department ( Fiscalía del Consumidor )
• Directorate-General of Production and Consumption
• Secretariat of the Ministry of the Presidency
• Secretariat of Health
• Secretariat of Education
• Secretariat of Agriculture and Livestock
• Community Affairs DepartmentIP/Q/HND/1, IP/Q2/HND/1,
IP/Q3/HND/1, IP/Q4/HND/1
Page 47
• Municipal Mayors' Offices
• Business Software Alliance
• International Federation of the Phonographic Industry
• Video Association of Honduras (ASOCEVIH)
• Phonogram Producers' Association (APROFONDO)
VI. REPLIES TO THE QUESTIONS POSED BY THE UNITED STATES
A. G ENERAL
1. Please describe, in relation to each form of intellectual property covered by the TRIPS
Agreement, including plant variety protection, the manner in which national treatment and
most-favoured-nation treatment are provided to nationals of other WTO Members.
Honduras provides adequate and effective protection for intellectual property rights through
the special domestic legislation in force (the Law on Copyright and Related Rights and the IndustrialProperty Law) and the international agreements that form part of its domestic legislation under
Article 16 of the Constitution of the Republic (Ber ne Convention for the Protection of Literary and
Artistic Works, Paris Convention for the Protection of  Industrial Property, International Convention
for the Protection of Performers, Producers of Phonograms and Broadcasting Organizations, and the
Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights or TRIPS Agreement of the
World Trade Organization).
Article 4, second paragraph, of the Law on Copyri ght and Related Rights stipulates that the
rights of foreigners not resident in Honduras and whose works have been published for the first time
outside the country shall be protected by this Law in accordance with the international agreements to
which Honduras is party, and that where no such agreement exists, the principle of reciprocity shall
apply.  As mentioned in the preceding paragraph, Honduras is party to the Berne Convention and theTRIPS Agreement; both instruments require Members to accord to foreigners treatment no less
favourable than that they accord to their own nationals, subject to the exceptions provided in the
Berne Convention.  Consequently, under the second paragraph of Article 4, Honduras accords
national treatment to all nationals of countries that are members of the Berne Convention and the
World Trade Organization.  Of the exceptions provided for in the Berne Convention, Hondurasapplies only the following:
(a) In the case of works by foreign authors, published for the first time abroad, the term
of protection shall not exceed that recognized by the law of the country in which the
work was published, if the latter is less than that specified by Honduran law.   If theterm specified in the law of the country in  which the work was published for the first
time is greater than that laid down by Honduran law, the work will be protected for
the period specified in the latter.  This provision can be found in Article 44 of the
Law on Copyright and Related Rights and is co nsistent with Article 7(8) of the Berne
Convention;
(b) in the case of works of fine art or original manuscripts of writers or composers sold
by public auction or through the business of a professional art dealer, the right to
receive five per cent (5%) of the selling price, for which Article 43 of the Law on
Copyright and Related Rights provides, is only accorded to foreign authors if they
enjoy the same right under the legislation of their country of origin. This provision is
not contained in the specific legislation but can be applied under the second
paragraph of Article 14 ter of the Berne Convention;IP/Q/HND/1, IP/Q2/HND/1,
IP/Q3/HND/1, IP/Q4/HND/1
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(c) with respect to foreign phonograms, the right in secondary use of phonograms is
accorded only to nationals of countries that provide the same protection for Honduran
right holders.  The term of protection provided for foreign phonograms may also be
restricted to the period for which they are protected in their country of origin, if theterm is less than that provided by Honduran law.  In any event, phonograms are
protected for at least 50 years after fixation, in accordance with Article 14.5 of the
TRIPS Agreement.
Similarly, Article 8 of the Law on Copyright and Related Rights stipulates, in relation to the
rights of performers, phonogram producers and broadcasting organizations, that protection shall be
granted for performances, phonograms and broadcasts, the holders of rights in which are foreigners
not resident in the country, in accordance with the international agreements to which the Republic ofHonduras is party and that, where no such agreement exists, the principle of reciprocity shall apply.
Honduras is party to the Rome Convention and the TRIPS Agreement and both instruments require
members to accord foreigners treatment no less fav ourable than that accorded to nationals, so that
under Article 8, Honduras grants performances, phonograms and broadcasts, the holders of rights in
which are foreigners not resident in the country but nationals of some member of the RomeConvention or the World Trade Organization, the same treatment as it accords to Hondurans under its
domestic law.
With regard to the Industrial Property Law, it does not contain any provision imposing on
foreigners additional requirements or conditions for acquiring, maintaining or exercising the rights
recognized by the law, which is consistent with Article 3 of the TRIPS Agreement.  Moreover, the
obligation to accord national treatment to nationals of other Members of the WTO is also established
by the Paris Convention for the Protection of Industrial Property, which forms part of the Honduran
legislation and is fully binding since it does not require the elaboration of special legislation for its
application.  Hence, where distinctive signs, inventions, utility models and industrial designs areconcerned, Honduras accords the same rights to nationals and foreigners.
As regards the principle of most-favoured-nation treatment established under Article 4 of the
TRIPS Agreement, although the intellectual property laws do not incorporate it expressly, the
obligation forms part of the Honduran legal system, since the provisions of the international
agreements which the country has ratified and which do not require the elaboration of special
legislation, as is the case with Article 4 of the TRIPS Agreement, are fully applicable, binding andgenerally enforced, subject to the exceptions for which that same article provides.  Consequently, any
advantage, favour, privilege, immunity or right granted by Honduras to the nationals of any other
country will be extended immediately and unconditionally to the nationals of all Members of the
WTO.
B.
COPYRIGHT AND RELATED RIGHTS
2. Please explain how the copyright law of Honduras protects computer programs as
literary works and compilations of data as required by Article 10 of the TRIPS Agreement.
Under Article 2 of the Law on Copyright and Related Rights, literary or artistic works are all
original creations regardless of their type and whatever their method or form of expression, quality orpurpose.  The same article contains an illustrative list of protected works which includes computer
programs.  Moreover, Article 12 protects as works, insofar as they constitute original creations,
collective works such as anthologies and the like, where the selection and arrangement constitute an
original creation.  In addition, there are specific provisions for the protection of computer programs
and databases (Articles 32, 33 and 34 of the Law on Copyright and Related Rights).IP/Q/HND/1, IP/Q2/HND/1,
IP/Q3/HND/1, IP/Q4/HND/1
Page 49
3. Article 11 of the TRIPS Agreement requires that rental rights for computer programs
and cinematographic works be available.  Please  cite to the corresponding provision of the
copyright law of Honduras.
Article 39(6) and (7) of the Law on Copyright and Related Rights includes among the
economic rights of the copyright holder the right to authorize the public distribution of a work by sale,
rental, public lending or any other means, while sp ecifically recognizing the right to authorize the
hiring out of a copy of an audiovisual work, a wo rk incorporated in a sound recording or a computer
program.
Likewise, under Article 25(1) and (2) of the Law, a producer of an audiovisual work has the
right to fix and reproduce the work with a view to its distribution and showing and to sell or rent
copies of the work.
4. Please describe the protection the copyright law of Honduras provides for performers,
and the term of the protection.
Under Article 113 of the Law on Copyright and Related Rights, performers have the
exclusive right to authorize the following acts:
(a) The broadcasting of their performances;
(b) the communication of their performances to the public;
(c) the fixation of their unfixed performances;(d) the reproduction of a fixation of their performances;(e) the original distribution to the public of a fixation of their performances;(f) the public hiring or loan of a fixation of their performances;  and(g) the making available to the public, by wire or wireless means, of their performances
fixed on a phonogram, so that each individual may have access thereto in a place andat a time of his own choosing.
The term of protection is seventy-five (75) years from the end of the year in which the
performance took place, with regard to performa nces not recorded on a phonogram, or seventy-five
(75) years from the end of the year of fixation, wi th regard to performances recorded on a phonogram
(Article 120 of the Law on Copyright and Related Rights).
5. Article 14.2 of the TRIPS Agreement provides that producers of phonograms are to
enjoy the right to authorize or prohibit the direct or indirect reproduction of their phonograms.
Article 14.2 requires that producers of phonograms are to have the right to authorize orprohibit the commercial rental to the public of originals or copies of their phonograms.  Please
describe how the copyright law of Honduras implements these obligations and indicate the term
of protection.
Under Article 118 of the Law on Copyrigh t and Related Rights, phonogram producers have
the exclusive right to authorize or prohibit the reproduction, be it direct or indirect, communication
and distribution to the public of their phonograms through sale, hiring, importing or any other means,
including making copies of their phonograms available to the public by whatever means so thatIP/Q/HND/1, IP/Q2/HND/1,
IP/Q3/HND/1, IP/Q4/HND/1
Page 50
members of the public may have access thereto in a place and at a time of their own choosing, or any
other use of their phonograms.
The term of protection for these rights is seventy-five (75) years from the end of the year of
fixation (Article 120 of the Law on Copyright and Related Rights).
C. TRADEMARKS
6. Please describe the subject matter that can comprise a trademark under the trademark
law of Honduras.
According to Articles 79(2) and 82 of the Industrial Property Law, a mark is any visible sign
capable of distinguishing the products or services of one enterprise from the products or services of
other enterprises.  Marks may consist of fanciful denominations, names, pseudonyms, commercial
slogans, figures, portraits, letters, numerals, monograms, labels, badges, impressions, emblems,
borders, lines, stripes, or combinations and arrangements of colours.  Likewise, marks may consist of
the shape or presentation of the product or its packaging or wrappings, or of the means or place ofretail sale of the corresponding products or services.
Finally, marks may also consist of national or foreign geographical indications, provided they
are sufficiently arbitrary and distinctive with respect to the products or services to which they are
applied and their use is not liable to create confusion or induce in the mind of the public erroneous orunjustified expectations with regard to the origin, source, qualities or characteristics of the products or
services for which the marks are used.
7. Please describe the procedure that must be followed to register a trademark in
Honduras, citing the relevant provisions of the law, and describe the rights that the owner of aregistered mark can exercise.
The procedure for submitting trademark applications to the Honduran Industrial Property
Registry and for granting registrations is laid down in Articles 85 to 91 of the Industrial Property Law.
Applications for trademark registration are submitted to the Industrial Property Registry, a
subdivision of the Directorate General for Intellectual Property, and must give particulars of the
applicant and his agent, the trademark and the products or services to which the trademark is to beapplied.  If a document or information is found to be missing, the Registry will allow the applicant a
period of thirty (30) days to make good the om ission.  Once the omission or error has been made
good, the mark is examined to determine whether it is non-registrable on any of the grounds laid
down in the Law, be it for intrinsic reasons or for the infringement of third-party rights.
If the Registry’s examination shows that the ma rk falls foul of any of the legal prohibitions,
the applicant is notified of the objections and allowed a period of sixty (60) days to amend his
application or to comment on the objections raised.  If this period expires without the applicant having
responded or if, the applicant having responded, the Registry considers that the objections still apply,
registration will be denied in a reasoned decision.
If the examination shows that the mark has not fa llen foul of any prohibition, then instructions
will be given for a notice to be published in the official journal (three times, at intervals of ten days).
This notice will contain:  the name of the applicant, the date of application, a reproduction of the mark
whose registration is requested and a list of the products or services to which the mark will be applied,with indication of the corresponding category.  During  the publication period and for thirty (30) days
after the last publication, any interested party or anyone who considers himself affected may object toIP/Q/HND/1, IP/Q2/HND/1,
IP/Q3/HND/1, IP/Q4/HND/1
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the registration of the mark, in which case he must indicate the basis for his objections and provide
evidence in support.
If no objections are raised within the specified period or if the objections raised are rejected,
the mark will be registered and the Registry will issue the applicant with a registration certificate that
will incorporate the data contained in the corresponding registration and give title to the exclusive
right in the mark.
Under Article 96 of the Industrial Property Law, registration of the trademark confers on the
owner the right to proceed against third partie s who, without his consent, perform any of the
following acts:
(a) Applying, attaching or affixing in any way a distinguishing sign similar or identical to
the registered mark to products for which the mark has been registered or to the
containers, wrappings, packaging or packing of such products;
(b) removing or altering a mark which its ow ner or a person authorized by the owner has
applied, attached or affixed to the products mentioned in the preceding subparagraph;
(c) manufacturing labels, containers, wrappings, packaging or other such materials as
may reproduce or contain a reproduction of the registered mark, and selling orstocking such materials;
(d) refilling or re-using for commercial purposes containers, wrappings or packaging
bearing the mark;
(e) using, in the course of trade, a sign identical or similar to the mark on the same
products or services as those for which the mark was registered, or for different
products or services if the use of the sign in connection with those products or
services might create confusion or a risk of association with the holder of the
registration; and
(f) using, in the course of trade, a sign identical or similar to the registered mark in
circumstances in which such use might mislead or confuse the public or, by diluting
the distinctiveness or commercial value of the mark or by taking unfair advantage of
its prestige or distinctiveness, unjustly damage the owner’s economic or commercial
interests.
8. Please provide the length and terms of protection the trademark law of Honduras
provides for a trademark.
Under Articles 92 and 93 of the Industrial Property Law, the initial term of protection for a
registered mark is ten (10) years from the date of granting of the registration, and registration may be
renewed indefinitely for successive periods of ten years each, provided that renewal is requested andthe corresponding maintenance fee is paid.
D. G
EOGRAPHICAL INDICATIONS
9. Please describe in detail how the laws of Honduras provide for the recognition and
protection of geographical indications required by Article 22.2 of the TRIPS Agreement, citingto the relevant provisions of law or regulation, and provide examples of geographical
indications so protected.IP/Q/HND/1, IP/Q2/HND/1,
IP/Q3/HND/1, IP/Q4/HND/1
Page 52
According to the second paragraph of Article 82 of the Industrial Property Law, marks may
consist of national or foreign geographical indications, provided they are sufficiently arbitrary and
distinctive with respect to the products or services to which they are applied and their use is not liable
to give rise to confusion or mistaken association with regard to the origin, provenance, qualities orcharacteristics of the products or services for which the mark is used.  This provision is supplemented
by:
• Article 83(11) of the Law which prohibits the registration of marks consisting of a
geographical indication that does not satisfy the requirements mentioned in the
preceding paragraph;  and
• Article 123 of the Law which prohibits the commercial use, in relation to a product or
service, of geographical indications that are false or misleading with respect to the
geographical origin of the product or service or whose use might create confusion or
give rise to unjustified expectations among the public as to the origin, provenance,
characteristics or qualities of the product or service.
Within the class of geographical indications, protection is provided for appellations of origin,
i.e. geographical indications consisting of the name of a particular country, region or place used to
identify a product originating therein, whose qualities are exclusively or essentially attributable to the
geographical environment in which it is produced, including both natural and human factors.  A name
which, without being that of a particular country, region or place, refers to a specific geographical
area, when used in relation to products originating in that area is also considered to be an appellation
of origin (Article 79(9) of the Industrial Property Law).
With regard to appellations of origin, Article 83(11) of the Industrial Property Law establishes
that signs which contain a protected appellation of origin for the same products, or for different
products if their use might create a risk of confusion or mistaken association with the appellation or
involve taking unfair advantage of its prestige, may not be registered as marks.
The Law provides a procedure for registering appellations of origin which is governed by the
provisions concerning marks.  Once obtained, the registration will remain valid indefinitely
(Articles 129 and 131 of the Industrial Property Law).  Foreign appellations of origin are protected in
accordance with the treaties and agreements ratified by Honduras, subject to a request from the
foreign producers, manufacturers or craftsmen having their production or manufacturingestablishment in the region or locality of the country to which the appellation of origin corresponds, or
from the competent public authorities of that country (Article 126 of the Industrial Property Law).  So
far, Honduras has received no requests for the registration of a geographical indication or appellation
of origin.
10. Please describe in detail the manner in which the higher level of protection required for
wines and spirits under Article 23.2 of the TRIPS Agreement is implemented, citing to therelevant provisions of law or regulation, and provide examples of geographical indications for
such products.
Article 23.2 of the TRIPS Agreement requires Members to refuse or invalidate the
registration of a trademark which contains a geographical indication identifying wines or spirits.  Inthis connection, the Honduran Law prohibits the registration of signs consisting of a geographical
indication that is not sufficiently arbitrary and distinctive with respect to the products or services to
which it is applied, regardless of whether the latter are wines or some other spirituous beverage
(Article 82 of the Industrial Property Law).IP/Q/HND/1, IP/Q2/HND/1,
IP/Q3/HND/1, IP/Q4/HND/1
Page 53
Infringements of this provision are punishable with a fine of ten (10) to twenty (20) minimum
wages, in accordance with Article 168 of the Industrial Property Law, which stipulates this penalty for
anyone who:
(a) Makes commercial use, in relation to a product or service, of a geographical
indication that is false or liable to mislead the public as to the origin of the product or
service or as to the identity of its producer, manufacturer or supplier;  or
(b) makes commercial use, in relation to a product, of a false or misleading appellation of
origin, or an imitation of an appellation of origin, even where the true origin of the
product is indicated or the appellation of origin is used in translation or accompanied
by expressions such as "type", "kind", "style", "imitation" or the like.
E. INDUSTRIAL DESIGNS
11. Please describe the procedure that must be followed to obtain protection for textile
designs and cite to the relevant provisions of law or regulation.
The procedure for submitting applications for industrial designs to the Honduran Industrial
Property Registry and for granting registrations is laid down in Articles 58 to 64 of the Industrial
Property Law.
Applications for the registration of an industrial design must be submitted to the Industrial
Property Registry and must indicate the name of the applicant and the designer, if other than the
applicant; in the latter case the way in which the right was acquired and the type or kind of products to
which the design will be applied, together with the classification heading and subheading of those
products, should be indicated.  The application should be accompanied by three (3) graphic or
photographic representations of the industrial de sign or, in the case of two-dimensional designs
incorporated in a flat material, a sample of the material incorporating the design.
The Registry will determine whether the application complies with these requirements.  The
Registry will notify the applicant of any omissio n, which must be made good within the fo llowing two
(2) months.  Once the omission or error has been made good, the design will be examined to
determine whether it complies with the registrability requirements, namely, originality and industrial
application (Article 29 of the Industrial Property Law).  If these two requirements are met, theRegistry will order the publication of a notice in the official journal, on three (3) consecutive
occasions at thirty (30) day intervals.  During the publication period, any interested party may object
to the registration of the design, in which case he must indicate the basis for his objections and
provide evidence in support. If no objections are raised within the specified period or if the objections
raised are rejected, a decision granting registration will be issued and the publication of a noticeannouncing the granting of registration will be ordered.
F. P
ATENTS
12. Please describe in detail the way in which the patent law of Honduras implements
Article 27 of the TRIPS Agreement, indicating any exceptions provided for, and including
details regarding the protection for micro-organisms and non-biological and microbiological
processes and plant varieties.  Please cite to the relevant provisions of the law.
Under Article 6 of the Industrial Property Law, patents are available for any inventions,
whether products or processes, in all fields of technology, provided that they are new, involve aninventive step and are capable of industrial application.  This includes pharmaceutical and agricultural
chemical products.IP/Q/HND/1, IP/Q2/HND/1,
IP/Q3/HND/1, IP/Q4/HND/1
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The sole exceptions are those set forth in Article 7 of the Law, which stipulates that the
following are excluded from patentability:
(a) Essentially biological processes for the production or reproduction of plants, animals
or their varieties, including genetic processes and processes relating to material
capable of self-duplication, direct or indirect, when such processes consist in
selecting or isolating available biological material and letting it act under natural
conditions;
(b) diagnostic, therapeutic and surgical methods for the treatment of humans or animals,
which are not regarded as inventions (Article 5.9 of the Industrial Property Law);  and
(c) plant varieties and species and animal breeds and species.
All other inventions, including micro-orga nisms and non-biological and microbiological
processes, are patentable if they meet the requirements of novelty, inventive step and industrial
application.
In the case of plant varieties, a draft law adapting the legislation to the provisions of the 1991
Act of the UPOV Convention is currently before th e Sovereign National Congress.  The text of this
Draft Law for the Protection of New Varieties of Plants is annexed hereto.
13. Please describe in detail the rights provided patent holders under the patent law of
Honduras and cite to the relevant provisions of law.
Under Article 17 of the Industrial Property Law,  the patent owner has the right to exclude
third parties from working the invention.  Thus, if the patent has been granted for a product, the owner
is entitled to proceed against anyone who, without his authorization:
(a) Makes the patented product;(b) offers for sale, sells or uses the patented product; or(c) imports or stocks the patented product with a view to using it, selling it or offering it
for sale.
If the patent has been granted for a process, the owner is entitled to proceed against anyone
who, without his authorization:
(a) Uses the patented process;
(b) makes a product directly obtained by the patented process;(c) offers for sale, sells or uses a product obtained by the patented process;  or(d) imports or stocks a product obtained by the patented process with a view to using it,
selling it or offering it for sale.
14. Please describe in detail any provisions in the laws of Honduras permitting
unauthorized use of a patent, citing to the relevant provisions of law, and describe in detail the
conditions under which such use can occur.IP/Q/HND/1, IP/Q2/HND/1,
IP/Q3/HND/1, IP/Q4/HND/1
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Under the Honduran legislation, the use of a pa tent, without the consent of the owner, may be
authorized for reasons of public interest, national emergency, national security, nutrition or public
health.  Such use may also be authorized where the patent has not been worked on the national
territory for four years following the filing of the application or for three years following the granting
of the patent, whichever period expires later (Articles 66 and 70 of the Industrial Property Law).
Article 31 of the TRIPS Agreement lays down a series of conditions which must be satisfied
whenever a compulsory licence is issued.  In compliance with these provisions, the Honduran
Industrial Property Law stipulates that:
(a) A person applying for a compulsory licence must show that he (1) has previously
sought to obtain a contractual licence from the patent owner;  and (2) has been unable
to obtain such a licence on reasonable conditions and within a reasonable period oftime (Article 67, first paragraph).
(b) where a licence is requested for a patent claiming any form of semi-conductor
technology, it will be issued solely for public non-commercial use for the benefit of a
public authority, or another party acting on its behalf, or to remedy a practice
determined to be anti-competitive (Article 67, second paragraph).
(c) Compulsory licences are granted predominantly for the supply of the domestic market
(Article 67(1).
(d) When a compulsory licence is issued, the amount and form of the payment to be
made by the licensee is determined on the basis of the scale of exploitation of the
licensed invention and the economic value of the licence (Article 67(2).
(e) A compulsory licence may be revoked, at the request of an interested party, where the
circumstances that led to its being issued cease to exist (Article 68, first paragraph).
(f) A compulsory licence granted for failure to work the invention may not be exclusive,
nor may it be transferred or sub-licensed, and it may not be assigned except with the
enterprise or establishment, or with such part of the enterprise or establishment, inwhich the invention is being industrially exploited (Article 68, second paragraph).
(g) As regards licences for second patents, the following additional conditions apply:
(i) Such a licence will only be granted if the invention claimed in the second
patent involves a technical advance of considerable economic significance in
relation to the invention protected by the first patent;
(ii) a compulsory licence may be granted for the second patent, at the request of
the owner of the first patent; and
(iii) such a licence may not be assigned, transferred or sub-licensed without the
simultaneous assignment, transfer or sublicensing of the second patent
(Article 69).
(h) With respect to any of the above cases, appeals may be lodged with the Ministry of
Industry and Commerce against decisions of the Registry, and the Ministry’s rulingswill be subject to judicial review, in accordance with the provisions of Article 149 of
the Industrial Property Law and Articles 137 to 140 of the Law on Administrative
Procedure.IP/Q/HND/1, IP/Q2/HND/1,
IP/Q3/HND/1, IP/Q4/HND/1
Page 56
15. What term of protection does the patent law of Honduras provide for patents?  Please
describe any provisions for extension of the term of protection and cite to the relevant
provisions of the law.
Under Article 15 of the Industrial Property Law, the term of protection for an invention is
twenty (20) years from the date of filing of the patent application with the Industrial Property
Registry; this period cannot be extended.
G. LAYOUT -DESIGNS (TOPOGRAPHIES ) OF INTEGRATED CIRCUITS
16. Please describe in detail the protection for layout-designs of integrated circuits provided
under the laws of Honduras, including the term of protection, and cite to the relevant provisionsof law.
Honduras has not yet adopted any specific provisions to regulate the protection of
topographies, but protection is granted for a term of ten years from the date of first commercial
exploitation of the design, as required by Article 38.2 of the TRIPS Agreement, which forms part ofthe Honduran legislation, having been approved and ratified as an Annex to the Marrakesh Agreement
Establishing the World Trade Organization (WTO).
H.
PROTECTION OF UNDISCLOSED INFORMATION
17. Please describe in detail how the laws of Honduras provide for the protection of
undisclosed information as required by Article 39.2 of the TRIPS Agreement and provide
citations to the relevant provisions of law.
The protection of trade secrets is dealt with in Articles 73 to 78 of the Industrial Property
Law.
Under that Law, any undisclosed information within the control of a natural or legal person
that can be used for a productive, industrial or commercial activity and is capable of being transmitted
to a third party is considered to be a trade secret (Article 73 of the Industrial Property Law).
A trade secret will be recognized as such, for protection purposes, if the constituent
information is not, as a body or in the precise configuration and assembly of its components, generallyknown among or readily accessible to persons within the circles that normally deal with such
information and, moreover, has been subject to reasonable steps by the lawful holder to keep it secret.
(Article 74 of the Industrial Property Law).
The protection of undisclosed information includes the right of the legitimate holder of the
information to prevent anyone who has had access to it under a duty of secrecy resulting from a
contractual or employment obligation to exploit, communicate or disclose the information, without his
authorization, and to prevent the acquisition of that information by unlawful or unfair means
(Article 75 of the Industrial Property Law).  To this end, Article 76 of the Industrial Property Law
stipulates that a trade secret will be considered to have been acquired by unlawful or unfair meanswhere such acquisition is the result of, among other things, industrial espionage, breach of contract or
other obligation, betrayal of trust, breach of a duty of secrecy, or inducement to commit any of these
acts.  This protection will continue in effect as long as the information protected satisfies the
definition of a trade secret.IP/Q/HND/1, IP/Q2/HND/1,
IP/Q3/HND/1, IP/Q4/HND/1
Page 57
18. Are other applicants for ma rketing approval for their own versions of a previously
approved pharmaceutical or agricultural chemical products permitted to rely on data submitted
by the earlier applicant?  If so, how long a period of exclusivity is given the earlier applicant
before such reliance becomes possible?
Under Article 77 of the Industrial Property Law, where it is required to submit secret data or
information to obtain approval for the marketing or sale of a pharmaceutical or agricultural chemical
product that contains a new chemical component, su ch information will be protected against unfair
commercial use by third parties and against disclosure.
In addition, Article 215 of the Criminal Code characterizes as an offence the disclosure,
without just cause, or the use, for one’s own advantage or that of others, of a secret learned by virtue
of one’s position, employment, profession or skil ls, thereby causing economic prejudice to the
proprietor of the information.  The penalty for this  offence ranges from three (3) to six (6) years’
imprisonment, depending on the circumstances.
19. Please describe in detail the manner in which protection is provided test data regarding
pharmaceutical and agricultural chemical prod ucts submitted to the government in order to
obtain marketing approval in Honduras and cite to the relevant provisions of law .
Information provided in order to obtain marketing approval for a pharmaceutical or
agricultural chemical product will be protected if the following conditions are satisfied:
• The product contains a new chemical component;  and
• the test data provided have not been previously disclosed.
The protection provided requires the competent administrative authority to protect the
information against unfair use by third parties and against disclosure, except where necessary toprotect the public or unless appropriate steps have been taken to ensure that the data are protected
against unfair commercial use by third parties.
Accordingly, the protection provided by Articles 77 and 78 of the Industrial Property Law
would not prevent a third party from requesting marketing approval for an identical or similar productcontaining the same chemical component, even on the basis of the same test data, if the applicant
could show that he had obtained the information lawfully or had access to it because it was disclosed
somewhere else in the world.
The present law does not stipulate a specific term of protection for such information.
Nevertheless, it is understood that protection will be maintained as long as the corresponding
conditions are met.
I.
ENFORCEMENT
20. Please describe in detail the manner in which the laws of Honduras provide for effective
action against infringement of intellectual prop erty rights as required by Article 41.1 of the
TRIPS Agreement.
To ensure the enforcement of intellectual property rights, both the Industrial Property Law
and the Law on Copyright and Related Rights allow the right holder to bring an administrative, civil
or criminal action to protect his rights against infringement, or to prevent or halt an infringement and
avoid its consequences (Articles 156 to 166 of the Law on Copyright and Related Rights).IP/Q/HND/1, IP/Q2/HND/1,
IP/Q3/HND/1, IP/Q4/HND/1
Page 58
The corresponding civil proceedings follow the procedure laid down in the Code of Civil
Procedure.  Under the civil procedure, the holder of a protected right can demand the cessation of the
unlawful activity and the award of damages.  Moreover, in the field of industrial property, the right
holder may claim back his right if a patent or utilit y model or an industrial design or distinctive sign
registration is applied for or obtained by someone who has no right to the patent or registration
(Article 158 of the Industrial Property Law).
The Honduran legislation also provides for criminal proceedings in cases of infringement of
copyright and related rights and infringement of rights in trademarks and distinctive signs
(Articles 248 to 263 of the Criminal Code).
In criminal cases, it is for the Office of the Attorney General to prosecute the infringer,
provided that the holder or licensee of the infringed rights has initiated the prosecution by filing acomplaint for infringement, without prejudice to  the possibility of his lodging a corresponding
complaint with the competent courts (Article 152.1, 2 and 3 of the Code of Criminal Procedure).
It is also possible, even before any of the above actions are brought, to request precautionary
measures or orders to protect rights, prevent infringement, avoid its consequences or obtain and
preserve evidence (Articles 165 of the Industrial Property Law, 174 of the Law on Copyright andRelated Rights and 270 of the Code of Civil Procedure).
3 Border measures suspending the importation
or exportation of goods that injure or infringe rights protected by the Law on Copyright and Related
Rights or the Industrial Property Law may also be ordered (Article 174.5 of the Law on Copyright and
Related Rights and Article 163.4 of the Industrial Property Law).
21. Article 43.1 of the TRIPS Agreement requires that judges be authorized to order
production of evidence necessary to substantiate a party’s claims where that party has been
unable to obtain such evidence from the opposi ng party.  Please describe how the laws or
regulations of Honduras provide this authorization, citing to the relevant provisions of law or
regulation.
As regards the powers of the authorities to order one of the parties to proceedings to produce
evidence in its possession, Article 69 of the Code of Administrative Procedure specifies that if the
ruling authority is not satisfied that the alleged facts are correct, then, at the request of the interested
party, it may set aside a period of not less than ten and not more than twenty days for taking evidence.
22. Please describe in detail all of the civil remedies that are available to right holders under
the laws of Honduras, citing to the re levant provisions of law or regulation.
See the responses to questions 20 and 23.
23. Please describe in detail the provisional procedures and remedies available to right
holders under the laws of Honduras, citing to the relevant provisions of law and regulation, and
indicate any condition under which a right holder may avail itself of those procedures andremedies.
Pursuant to Articles 163 and 165 of the I ndustrial Property Law and 173 and 174 of the Law
on Copyright and Related Rights, the judicial authorities may order, depending on the circumstances,
whatever measures are necessary to prevent the performance of infringing acts or may order the
cessation of such acts so as to avoid their consequences.  These measures may also be ordered toobtain or preserve evidence or ensure the effectiveness of the action brought by the right holder.  The
measures that may be ordered include:
                                                     
3 For further details of the provisional measures available, see the response to question 23.IP/Q/HND/1, IP/Q2/HND/1,
IP/Q3/HND/1, IP/Q4/HND/1
Page 59
(a) Seizure of the products resulting from the infringement and the means used
predominantly to commit the infringement;
(b) prohibition of the importation or exportation of the products or the materials or means
used predominantly to commit the infringement;
(c) withdrawal from the channels of commerce of the products or means used
predominantly to commit the infringement;  and
(d) any measure necessary to prevent the continuation or repetition of the infringement,
including the destruction of the means seized, where indispensable.
A precautionary measure may only be ordered if the person requesting it can prove his
entitlement to bring action and the existence of the infringed right, provides reliable evidence for the
presumption of infringement or the imminence thereo f, shows that any delay in its application would
cause irreparable or major injury and, moreover, posts security or sufficient assurance to cover any
damages that might be awarded as a result of th e enforcement of the measure (Articles 270 of the
Code of Civil Procedure, 13 of the Code of Criminal Procedure and 165 of the Industrial Property
Law).
A precautionary measure may be enforced inaudita altera parte , in which case the other party
must be notified immediately of its enforcement (Article 270 of the Code of Civil Procedure).
Precautionary measures enforced before an action on the merits is brought will be automatically cease
to have legal effect if the interested party fails to bring the main action within fifteen (15) working
days of enforcement (Code of Civil Procedure).
J. SPECIAL REQUIREMENTS RELATED TO BORDER MEASURES
24. Please describe in detail the procedures under the laws of Honduras that provide for
border enforcement at least for trademark counte rfeiting and copyright piracy, identifying the
competent authority and citing to the re levant provisions of law or regulation.
There is express provision for the suspension of the release of imports and exports by customs
in the intellectual property legislation (Articles 174 (5) of the Law on Copyright and Related Rights
and 163 and 165 of the Industrial Property Law), among the measures that the holder of the protectedright may request in the event of infringement.  The application of these measures by the customs
authorities requires a court order, whether obtained as a consequence of the bringing of a civil or
criminal action or as a precautionary measure.  In the latter case, the same provisions on precautionary
measures as described in the response to Question 23 will apply.
There now exists a Draft Regulation of the Executive Revenue Directorate (Customs) which,
in accordance with the provisions of the TRIPS, lays down all the procedures that the service must
follow to enforce precautionary measures ordering the suspension of the importation or exportation of
products that infringe an intellectual property right.   The draft also provides for the possibility of the
measure being requested directly from the Executive Revenue Directorate (Customs).
25. Please indicate if border enforcement is available to owners of other forms of intellectual
property and, if so, please describe the procedures and remedies available in relation to each
form of intellectual property, citing the relevant provisions of law.
Yes.  The suspension of imports of infringing products can be requested, as a precautionary
measure, in connection with all categories of intellectual property protected under Honduran lawIP/Q/HND/1, IP/Q2/HND/1,
IP/Q3/HND/1, IP/Q4/HND/1
Page 60
(Articles 174 (5) of the Law on Copyright and Related Rights and 163 and 165 of the Industrial
Property Law).
26. Article 58 of the TRIPS Agreement specifies procedures to be followed where the
competent authorities can act ex officio.  Plea se explain whether the competent authorities in
Honduras are empowered to act ex officio and, if so, please identify the intellectual property
areas subject to ex officio action.
At present, there is no provision for the customs authorities to act ex officio;  however, under
Article 4(a) of the Draft Regulation on Special Border Measures the customs authorities may act
ex officio if it is apparent that the goods in question are violating intellectual property law as a result
of trademark counterfeiting or piracy; this action may be taken at the time of clearance of the goods,in accordance with Article 57 of the Customs Law contained in Decree Law No. 212–87.
K.
CRIMINAL PROCEDURES
27. Please describe in detail how the laws of Honduras implement Article 61 of the TRIPS
Agreement that requires Members to have criminal procedures and penalties, includingimprisonment and/or monetary fines sufficient to act as a deterrent, at least for cases of willful
trademark counterfeiting and copyright infringement  on a commercial scale.  Please cite to the
relevant provisions of law and regulation.
In the field of intellectual property, the Honduran legislation (Articles 248A, 249, 251 and
299 of the Criminal Code) provides for the criminal prosecution, with the possibility of three to six
years’ imprisonment and a fine of from fifty thousand (L.50,000.00) to one hundred thousand
(L.100,000.00) lempiras, of the following offences:
(a) The use of television signals transmitted by satellite and the reproduction or
projection of videos, films and other similar works, without the authorization of theright holder;
(b) the manufacture or sale of articles which because of their name, mark, presentation or
appearance could be confused with similar products patented or registered under the
name of another;
(c) the counterfeiting, imitation or fraudulent use of any of the legal interests protected
by the Industrial Property Law (inventions, utility models, industrial designs and
distinctive signs);
(d) the marketing of any of the legal interests protected by the Industrial Property Law
(inventions, utility models, industrial designs and distinctive signs);  and
(e) acts of unfair competition.  Article 299, subparagraph 3, of the Criminal Code
specifies a penalty of three (3) to five (5) years’ imprisonment and a fine of fifty
thousand (L.50,000.00) to one hundred thousand (L.100,000,00) for anyone who
performs acts that constitute unfair competition under the provisions of theCommercial Code, other special laws or international agreements.
There is also provision for imprisonment in the following cases:With regard to the violation and disclosure of trade secrets, under Articles 214 and 215 of the
Criminal Code, anyone who, without proper judicial  authorization, for whatever purpose, appropriates
papers or correspondence belonging to another or intercepts his communications, or causes them to beIP/Q/HND/1, IP/Q2/HND/1,
IP/Q3/HND/1, IP/Q4/HND/1
Page 61
intercepted, is liable to six (6) to eight (8) years’ imprisonment if a private individual and eight (8) to
twelve (12) years if an official or civil servant; likewise, anyone who discloses, without just cause, or
makes use, for his own advantage or that of another, of a secret he has learned by reason of his office
and thereby causes someone injury will be liabl e to three (3) to six (6) years' imprisonment.
There are monetary fines (from ten to two hundred minimum wages) in the cases mentioned
in Articles 167 of the Law on Copyright and Related Rights and 167, 168 and 171 of the Industrial
Property Law).
28. Article 61 also requires that remedies in a ppropriate cases include the seizure, forfeiture
and destruction of infringing goods and any materials and implements the predominant use of
which has been the commission of the offence.  Please describe the provisions in the laws of
Honduras that provide for such remedies, and describe the circumstances in which those
remedies would be imposed, citing to the relevant provisions of law or regulation.
Article 174 (4) of the Law on Copyright and Rela ted Rights provides for the seizure of copies
of works or of sound recordings which may reasonably be assumed to have been produced orimported without the authorization of the right holder , together with the packaging of those copies and
such means as may have been used to produce them.  Articles 163(3) and (5) and 165(2) of the
Industrial Property Law stipulate the same for protected inventions, utility models, industrial designs
and distinctive signs.
29. Article 61 also indicates that Members may provide for criminal procedures and
penalties in cases of willful infringement of other forms of intellectual property.  Please describe
any provisions of the laws of Honduras that provide for such procedures and remedies, citing to
the relevant provisions of law or regulation.
See the response to question 27.
L.
STATISTICAL QUESTIONS
30. Please provide statistical information related  to civil copyright, trademark, geographical
indication, industrial design, patent, integr ated circuit layout-design, and trade secret
enforcement for 2000, including the number of ca ses filed;  injunctions issued;  infringing
products seized;  infringing equipment seized;  cases resolved (including settlement);  and the
amount of damages awarded.
The Law provides for civil actions in this area but there has been no enforcement because
right holders have preferred to take action through administrative channels.
31. Please provide statistical information relat ed to criminal enforcement in the area of
copyright piracy and trademark infringeme nt for 2000, including the 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 was suspended) and any other
information establishing that the criminal syst em operates effectively to deter copyright piracy
and trademark counterfeiting.
Statistical data attached.IP/Q/HND/1, IP/Q2/HND/1,
IP/Q3/HND/1, IP/Q4/HND/1
Page 62
ANEXO4
ANTEPROYECTO DE LA LEY PARA LA PROTECCIÓN
DE LAS OBTENCIONES VEGETALES.
EL SOBERANO CONGRESO NACIONAL
CONSIDERANDO: Que el Gobierno de Honduras se ha propuesto como parte de su estrategia de
desarrollo, la inserción del país en el mercado internacional, propiciando un ambiente adecuado para
la inversión nacional y extranjera.
CONSIDERANDO : Que constituye una prioridad del Gobierno promocionar la actividad inventiva,
en sus más diversas modalidades.
CONSIDERANDO : Que se debe fomentar por parte del Gobierno, la mejo ra y el desarrollo de
nuevas variedades, teniendo en cuenta también, los avances de las técnicas de mejoramiento vegetal.
CONSIDERANDO : Que al no existir en el país una legislación que propicie una efectiva protección
de los derechos de los titulares de plantas vegetales mejoradas ( obtenciones vegetales ), se hace
necesario crear un instrumento nacional que tenga como base  los principios internacionales que rigen
esta materia.
CONSIDERANDO: Que los derechos de las obtenc iones vegetales conllevan un fuerte impacto
económico que impone la participación tutelar del Estado, no solo en el campo registral, sino como
ente supervisor de las entidades de gestión colectiva procurando la avenencia conciliatoria en los
conflictos que se presenten y para la aplicación de las sanciones administrativas previstas.
POR TANTO DECRETA :
LEY PARA LA PROTECCION DE OBTENCIONES VEGETALES
TITULO PRIMERO
DISPOSICIONES GENERALES
CAPITULO I
DEL OBJETO DE LA LEY
ARTICULO 1.- La presente ley tiene por objeto fijar las bases y  procedimientos para la protección de
los derechos de los obtentores  de variedades vegetales. Su aplicación e interpretación, para efectosadministrativos, corresponderá a la Secretaría de Agricultura y Ganadería por medio del departamento
de Certificación de Semillas del Servicio Nacional de Sanidad Agropecuaria ( SENASA ).
ARTICULO 2.- Para los efectos de esta ley se entenderá por:
- Caracteres pertinentes:  Expresiones fenotípicas y genotípicas propias de la variedad vegetal, que
permiten su identificación;
- Comité: El comité calificador de variedades vegetales;
- Material de propagación:  Cualquier material de reproducci ón sexual o asexual que pueda ser
utilizado para la producción o multiplicación de una variedad vegetal, incluyendo semillas para
                                                     
4 In Spanish only.IP/Q/HND/1, IP/Q2/HND/1,
IP/Q3/HND/1, IP/Q4/HND/1
Page 63
siembra y cualquier planta entera o parte de ella de la cual sea posible obtener plantas enteras o
semillas;
- Obtentor: Persona natural o jurídica   que mediante un proceso de mejoramiento haya obtenido y
desarrollado, una variedad vegetal de cualquier genero y especie;
- Proceso de mejoramiento: Técnica o conjunto de técnicas y procedimientos que permiten
desarrollar una variedad vegetal .
- Registro:  El registro Nacional de Variedades Vegetales.
- Secretaría:  La Secretara de Agricultura y Ganadería.
- Titulo de Obtentor:  Documento expedido por la Secretaría en el que se reconoce y ampara el
derecho del obtentor de una variedad vegetal, nueva, distinta, estable y homogénea.
- Variedad vegetal: conjunto de plantas de un solo taxón botánico del rango mas bajo conocido, que
con independencia de si responde o no plenamente a las condiciones para la concesión de un derecho
de obtentor, pueda definirse por la expresión de los caracteres resultantes de un cierto genotipo o de
una cierta combinación de genotipos o distinguirse de cualquier otro conjunto de plantas por la
expresión de uno de dichos caracteres por lo me nos, considerándose como una unidad, habida cuenta
de su aptitud a propagarse sin alteración.
ARTICULO 3.- La Secretaría tendrá las siguientes atribuciones1o.- Fomentar y promover las actividades  relativas a la protección de los derechos del obtentor, en las
que participen las diversas dependencias y entidades de la administración pública, así como los
sectores sociales y privados.
2o. - Resolver las solicitudes de protección de los derechos del obtentor, previo dictamen del comité,
sobre la expedición del titulo de obtentor, en los términos de esta ley y su reglamento.
3o.- Extender las licencias de emergencia en los casos que se señalan en esta ley.4o.- Dar los lineamientos conforme a los cuales se corrijan los errores administrativos de los datos
registrados y de los documentos que extienda la Secretaría.
5o.- Difundir las solicitudes de protección y las variedades vegetales protegidas, en los términos y con
la periodicidad que indique el reglamento de esta ley.
6o.- Establecer las normas oficiales que correspondan y verificar su cumplimiento.7o.- Delegar a las cámaras de comercio e industrias la responsabilidad de actuar como arbitro en la
resolución de controversias que le sean sometidas por los interesados,  relacionadas con el pago de
daños y perjuicios derivados de la violación a los derechos que tutela esta ley así como en todos
aquellos asuntos relacionados con presuntas irregularidades  relativas a la materia de esta ley y que no
se prevean en la misma o en su reglamento.
8o.- Resolver los recursos administrativos relativos a la aplicación de esta ley.
9o.- Ordenar y practicar visitas de verificación, requerir información y datos, realizar las
investigaciones de presuntas infracciones administrativas, ordenar y ejecutar las medidas para
prevenir o hacer cesar la violación de los derechos que esta ley protege e imponer las sanciones
administrativas con arreglo a lo dispuesto en dichos ordenamientos.IP/Q/HND/1, IP/Q2/HND/1,
IP/Q3/HND/1, IP/Q4/HND/1
Page 64
10o.- Promover la cooperación internacional mediante el intercambio de experiencias con
instituciones de otros países encargadas del registro y protección de los derechos del obtentor,
incluyendo la capacitación y el entrenamiento profesional de personal, la transferencia de metodologíade trabajo y organización, el intercambio de publicaciones y la actualización de acervos documentales
y bases de datos en la materia, así como, llevar un catalogo de los investigadores extranjeros
11o.- Las demás atribuciones que le confieren este u otros ordenamientos.ARTICULO 4.- La presente ley se aplicará  por lo  menos a quince ( 15 ) géneros o especies vegetales
en la fecha de su entrada en vigencia y al termino de diez ( 10 ) años comprenderá a todos los génerosy especies vegetales.
ARTICULO 5.- Serán beneficiarios de los de rechos previstos por la presente ley :
a)  Los nacionales de Honduras y todas las personas que tengan su domicilio o sede en Honduras.b) Los nacionales de un estado o una organización intergubernamental parte en el convenio
internacional para la protección de las obtenciones vegetales y todas las personas que tengan su
domicilio o sede en el territorio de un estado o una institución intergubernamental parte en el
convenio internacional para la protección de las obtenciones vegetales.
  
c) Y los nacionales de cualquier estado que, sin ser estado o una organización intergubernamental
parte en el convenio internacional para la protección de las obtenciones vegetales, conceda una
protección eficaz a los nacionales de Honduras.
- A los fines del segundo párrafo del presente articulo, se entenderá por "nacionales" cuando la parte
en el convenio internacional para la protección de las obtenciones vegetales sea un estado, los
nacionales de ese estado y, cuando la parte en el convenio internacional para la protección de las
obtenciones vegetales sea una organización intergubernamental, los nacionales de cualquiera de sus
estados miembros.
ARTICULO 6.- Toda persona que no tenga ni domici lio ni sede en Honduras solo podrá ser parte en
un procedimiento iniciado de conformidad con la presente ley y hacer valer los derechos dimanantes
de la misma a condición de tener un Representante que tenga su domicilio o una oficina en Honduras .
El Representante tendrá un poder de representación ante la Secretaría así como en los litigios
relacionados con la protección de las obtenciones vegetales .
TITULO SEGUNDO
PROTECCION DE LOS DERECHOS DEL OBTENTOR DE VARIEDADES VEGETALES
CAPITULO I
DE LOS DERECHOS Y OBLIGACIONES DEL OBTENTOR
ARTICULO 7.- Los derechos que esta ley otorga a los obtentores de variedades vegetales son los
siguientes:
1o.- Ser reconocido como obtentor de una variedad vegetal. Este derecho es inalienable e
imprescriptible.
2o.-Se requerirá la autorización del obtentor o del titular del derecho de obtentor para los actos
siguientes:
- La producción o reproducción ( Multiplicación )
- La preparación a los fines de la reproducción o de la multiplicación,IP/Q/HND/1, IP/Q2/HND/1,
IP/Q3/HND/1, IP/Q4/HND/1
Page 65
- La oferta en venta,
- La venta o cualquier otra forma de comercialización,
- La exportación
- La importación- La posesión para cualquiera de los fines mencionados.
El obtentor podrá subordinar su autorización a condiciones y a limitaciones.3o.- A reserva de lo dispuesto en los artículos 8 al 10, se requerirá la autorización del titular para los
actos mencionados en el numeral 2o. realizados respecto del producto de la cosecha, incluidas plantas
enteras y partes de plantas, obtenido por la utilización no autorizada de material de reproducción o demultiplicación de la variedad protegida, a menos que el titular haya podido ejercer razonablemente su
derecho en relación con dicho material de reproducción o de multiplicación.
4o.- Las disposiciones contempladas en los numerales 2o. y 3o. también se aplicarán :
a) A las variedades derivadas esencialmente de la variedad protegida, cuando esta no sea a su vez una
variedad esencialmente derivada.
b) A las variedades que no se distingan  claramente de la variedad protegida.
c) A  las variedades cuya  producción   necesite  el  empleo  repetido de  la  variedad  protegida.
5o.- A los efectos de lo establecido en el numeral 4o. del presente articulo, se considera una variedad
esencialmente derivada de otra variedad si:
a) Se deriva principalmente de la variedad inicial, o de una variedad que a su vez se deriva
principalmente de la variedad inicial, conservando al mismo tiempo las expresiones de los caracteres
esenciales que resulten del genotipo o de la combinación de  genotipos de la variedad inicial.
b) Si se distingue claramente de la variedad inicial, yc) Salvo por lo que respecta a las diferencias resultantes de la derivación, es conforme  a  la  variedad
inicial  en  la  expresión de los caracteres esenciales que resulten del genotipo o de la combinación de
genotipos de la variedad inicial.
Las variedades esencialmente derivadas podrán obtenerse, por ejemplo, por la selección de un
mutante natural o inducido o de una variante somoclonal, selección de un individuo variante entre lasplantas de la variedad inicial, retrocruzamientos o transformaciones por ingeniería genética.
El obtentor podrá subordinar su autorización a condiciones y a limitaciones.ARTICULO 8.- Excepciones al Derecho de ObtentorEl derecho de obtentor no se extenderá :a) A los actos realizados en un marco privado con fines no comerciales.
b) A los actos realizados a titulo experimental, y
c) A los actos realizados con fines de la creación de nuevas variedades, a menos que las disposiciones
del articulo 7 numeral 4o. sean aplicables, a los actos mencionados en el Artículo 7 numerales 2o y
3o. realizados con tales variedades.IP/Q/HND/1, IP/Q2/HND/1,
IP/Q3/HND/1, IP/Q4/HND/1
Page 66
d) A los actos relativos al material de su variedad, o de una variedad cubierta por el articulo 7 numeral
4o., que haya sido vendido o comercializado de otra manera en el territorio de Honduras por el titular
o con su consentimiento, o material derivado de dicho material, amenos que estos actos impliquen
nuevas reproducciones o multiplicaciones de la variedad en cuestión, o que impliquen unaexportación de material de la variedad, que permita reproducirla en un país que no proteja las
variedades del genero o de la especie vegetal a que pertenezca la variedad, salvo si el material
exportado esta destinado al consumo.
ARTICULO 9.- No lesiona el derecho de obtentor  quien reserve y siembre para su propio uso, o
venda como materia prima o alimento el producto obtenido del cultivo de la variedad protegida. Se
exceptúa de ese artículo la utilización comercial del material de multiplicación, reproducción opropagación, incluyendo plantas enteras y sus partes, de las especies frutícolas, ornamentales y
forestales.
ARTICULO 10. A fines de lo dispuesto en el artícu lo 8 literal d), se entenderá por "material", en
relación con una variedad:
a) Al material de reproducción o de multiplicación vegetativa, en cualquier forma.b) Al producto de la cosecha, incluidadas las plantas enteras y las partes de plantas, y
c) A todo producto fabricado directamente a partir del producto de la cosecha.
ARTICULO11.-   El derecho otorgado al obtentor, contado a partir de la fecha de concesión del titulo
de protección, tendrá una duración de:
a) veinticinco años ( 25 )  para especies perennes (forestales, frutícolas, vides, ornamentales) con
inclusión en cada caso,  de sus porta injertos.
b) veinte años ( 20 ) para las especies no incluidas en el inciso anterior.Estos plazos se contarán a partir de la fecha de expedición del titulo de obtentor y, una vez
transcurridos,  su aprovechamiento y explotación, pasaran al dominio público.
ARTICULO 12.- El obtentor podrá renunciar a los derechos  que le confiere el articulo 7 de esta Ley,
para ello la renuncia deberá constar por escrito y para su validez deberá inscribirse en el registro, Será
irrevocable y el aprovechamiento y explotación de la variedad vegetal y de su material de
propagación   pasaran a formar parte del dominio público.
ARTICULO 13.- Se otorgará el titulo de obtentor de  una variedad vegetal, siempre y cuando esta sea:
a) Nueva.   La variedad será considerada nueva si, en la fecha de presentación  de la solicitud de
derecho de obtentor, el material de reproducción  o de multiplicación vegetativa o un producto decosecha  de la variedad  no ha sido vendido o entregado  a terceros de otra manera , por  el
obtentor o con su consentimiento, a los fines  de la explotación  de la variedad en el territorio de
la Parte Contratante  en la  que se hubiese  presentado  la solicitud, más de un año  antes de esta
fecha,  y en  un territorio  distinto  del de la Parte   contratante  en la que se hubiese presentado  la
solicitud , más de cuatro  años o,  en el caso de árboles  y vides,  más de seis años  antes de  esafecha.
(Variedades de reciente creación)  Cuando una  Parte Contratante  aplique el presente Acuerdo a un
género  o una especie vegetal al que no aplicase anteriormente el  Convenio de la UPOV (Unión
Internacional para la Protección de las Obtenciones Vegetales) o una Acta anterior del mismo, podráIP/Q/HND/1, IP/Q2/HND/1,
IP/Q3/HND/1, IP/Q4/HND/1
Page 67
considerar  que una variedad de creación  reciente existente en la fecha de extensión de la protección
satisface  la condición  de novedad definida  en el párrafo  anterior, incluso si la venta  o la entrega a
terceros  descrita  en dicho párrafo  hubiese tenido lugar  antes  de los plazos  definidos en el párrafo
mencionado.
("Territorios" en ciertos casos )  Las  Partes  Contratantes que sean  Estados  miembros de una sola y
misma organización intergubernamental, cuando las normas de esa organización  lo requieran, podrán
actuar conjuntamente  para asimilar los actos realizados  en los territorios  de los Estados Miembros
de esa Organización  a actos  realizados en su propio territorio ;  en su caso, notificarán  esa
asimilación  al Secretario General de la UPOV.
b)  Distinta.  Tendrá esta característica la variedad vegetal que se distinga claramente de cualquier
otra variedad cuya existencia en la fecha de presentación de la solicitud, sea notoriamente conocida.En particular, el depósito, en cualquier país, de una solicitud de concesión de un derecho de obtentor
para otra variedad o de inscripción de otra variedad en un registro oficial de variedades, se reputará
que hace a esta otra variedad notoriamente conocida a partir de la fecha de solicitud, si esta conduce a
la concesión del derecho de obtentor o a la inscripción de esa otra variedad en el registro oficial de
variedades, según el caso.
c)  Estable.  Tendrá esta característica la variedad vegetal que conserve inalterados sus caracteres
pertinentes después de reproducciones o propagaciones sucesivas o, en caso de un ciclo particular de
reproducciones o de multiplicaciones, al final de cada ciclo.
d)  Homogénea.  Tendrá esta característica la variedad vegetal que sea suficientemente uniforme en
sus caracteres pertinentes, a reserva de la variación previsible por su reproducción sexuada o
multiplicación vegetativa.
La concesión del derecho de obtentor no podrá depender de condiciones suplementarias o diferentes, a
reserva de que la variedad sea designada por una denominación conforme a lo dispuesto en el Articulo
16, que el solicitante haya satisfecho las formalidades previstas por la presente Ley y que haya pagado
los aranceles adecuados.
ARTICULO 14.- El derecho de obte ntor es independiente de  las medidas adoptadas por Honduras
para reglamentar en su territorio, la producción, el control y la comercialización del material de las
variedades, o la importación y exportación de ese material.
CAPITULO II
DE LA SOLICITUD Y OTORGAMIENTO DEL TITULO DE OBTENTOR
ARTICULO 15.- La Secretaría recibirá y tramitará  las solicitudes de expedición de los títulos de
obtentor. Para tal efecto, podrá requerir que se le entregue la variedad vegetal o su material de
propagación en las cantidades que considere conveniente y, en su caso, los documentos e informacióncomplementarios que se estime necesarios para verificar si se cumple con los requisitos legales;
reglamentarios y las normas oficiales hondureñas.
Las solicitudes quedará sin efecto de no cumplir el solicitante con los requerimientos que se le
hubiesen formulado en un plazo de tres meses c ontados a partir de la notificación de dichos
requerimientos.
ARTICULO 16.- En la solicitud del titulo de obtentor se propondrá una denominación de la variedad,
la cual para ser aprobada, deberá ser diferente a cualquiera otra existente en el país o en el extranjero,
cumplir con los demás requisitos establecidos en el reglamento de esta ley, y no ser idéntica o similarIP/Q/HND/1, IP/Q2/HND/1,
IP/Q3/HND/1, IP/Q4/HND/1
Page 68
en grado de confusión a una previamente protegida conforme a la ley de propiedad industrial. En la
solicitud se deberá especificar la genealogía y el origen de la variedad vegetal.
En caso de que la denominación propuesta no cumpla los requisitos anteriores, la secretaría la
rechazará y exigirá al solicitante que proponga otra en un plazo perentorio de 30 días hábiles.
ARTICULO 17.- El solicitante podrá beneficiarse de la prioridad de una solicitud anterior presentada
legalmente para la misma variedad  por él mismo o por su predecesor en el titulo ante la autoridad de
una parte contratante.
a) Si la solicitud presentada ante la oficina ha sido   precedida de varias solicitudes, la prioridad solo
podrá basarse en la solicitud más antigua.
Se habrá de reivindicar la prioridad, de forma expresa, en la solicitud presentada ante la oficina. Solo
podrá reivindicarse durante un plazo de doce meses contados a partir de la fecha de presentación  de
la primera solicitud.
b)  Para beneficiarse del derecho de prioridad, el solicitante deberá suministrar a la oficina, en un
plazo de tres meses contados a partir de la fecha de presentación una copia de la primera solicitud.
La oficina podrá solicitar que se presente, en un plazo de tres meses contados a partir de la fecha de
recepción de la comunicación, una traducción de la primera solicitud.
c) Además, el solicitante estará facultado para solicitar un aplazamiento, de un máximo de dos años
contados a partir de la fecha de vencimiento del plazo de prioridad (tres años contados a partir de la
fecha de presentación de la primera solicitud) del examen de la variedad. No obstante si se rechazarao se retirara la primera solicitud, la oficina podrá iniciar el examen de la variedad antes de la fecha
indicada por el solicitante; en ese caso, se concederá al solicitante un plazo conveniente  para
suministrar las informaciones, los documentos o el material necesario para el examen.
La prioridad tendrá por efecto que la solicitud será considerada como presentada en la fecha de
presentación de la primera solicitud con respecto a las condiciones de la presentación vinculadas a la
variedad.
ARTICULO 18.- La verificación del cumplimiento de los requisitos señalados en los Artículos 13 y
16 de esta ley estará a cargo del comité, con base en lo que establezca el reglamento respectivo y las
normas oficiales hondureñas correspondientes.
Una vez cumplidos todos los requisitos, la Secretaría expedirá el titulo de obtentor, que reconocerá y
amparará los derechos a que se refiere el Artículo 7 de esta ley.
ARTICULO 19.- Cuando una variedad vegetal sea obtenida y desarrollada, por dos o mas personas
físicas o morales de manera conjunta, deberán precisar en la solicitud la participación que correspondaa cada una y designar a un representante común.
En caso de no designarse expresamente al representante común, se tendrá como tal al primero que se
nombre en la solicitud.
ARTICULO 20.- Cuando se cumplan los requisitos de novedad, denominación y llenado formal de la
solicitud, la Secretaría expedirá, dentro de los ciento veinte días siguientes a la presentación de la
solicitud, una constancia de presentación en tanto se otorga el titulo de obtentor y se procederá a la
publicación de la solicitud.IP/Q/HND/1, IP/Q2/HND/1,
IP/Q3/HND/1, IP/Q4/HND/1
Page 69
Con  respecto al periodo comprendido desde la fecha de expedición de la constancia de presentación y
hasta el otorgamiento del titulo de obtentor correspondiente, el titular tendrá derecho a  recibir una
remuneración equitativa de quien, durante el mencionado intervalo, haya realizado actos que tras la
concesión del derecho requieran la autorización del titular de conformidad con las disposiciones delarticulo 7 de esta Ley.
El obtentor podrá exigir a partir del inicio de la vigencia de su titulo, tal remuneración.ARTICULO 21.- Durante el periodo de vigencia del titulo de obtentor, la Secretaría estará facultada
para comparar los caracteres pertinentes de la variedad vegetal, con los correspondientes caracteres
pertinentes tomados en cuenta en el momento de otorgar el titulo de obtentor.
Al efecto, el obtentor tendrá la obligación de proporcionar el material de propagación y la
información que al respecto solicite la Secretaría, así como de permitir las visitas de verificación.
Para efectos de lo anterior, la Secretaría podrá, en caso necesario, solicitar la intervención del comité.ARTICULO 22.- Para mantener la vigencia del titulo de obtentor, el obtentor o en su caso el
causahabiente, deberá pagar los aranceles que señale el reglamento de la presente ley.
ARTICULO 23.- La constancia de presentación y el titulo de obtentor quedarán sin efecto al
vencimiento de su vigencia. La constancia caducará cuando el interesado no la recoja dentro de los
doce meses siguientes a partir de la fecha en que se le notifique su expedición.
ARTICULO 24.- Emitido el titulo de obtentor, la denominación quedará firme e inalterable, aun
cuando expire la vigencia del mismo y la variedad vegetal pase al dominio público.
Toda persona que use o aproveche la variedad vegetal para cualquier propósito, estará obligada a
utilizar y respetar la denominación aprobada.
La denominación aprobada, cuando se utilice junto con una marca, nombre comercial u otra
indicación, deberá ser fácilmente reconocible y distinguible.
CAPITULO III
DE LA TRANSMISION DE DERECHOS
ARTICULO 25.- Los derechos que confiere el titu lo de obtentor, con excepción del derecho a que se
refiere el numeral 1o. del Artículo 7 de esta ley, podrán gravarse y transmitirse total o parcialmente,mediante cualquier titulo legal, ante notario público.
ARTICULO 26.- En el caso de la transmisión de los derechos a que se refiere el numeral 2o. del
articulo 7 de esta ley, el beneficiario, cesionario o causahabiente de dichos derechos estará obligado a
proporcionar a la Secretaría:
a) Su nombre, nacionalidad y domicilio.b) Un ejemplar del documento en el que conste  la  transmisión de los derechos y que incluya todas las
obligaciones y derechos que se deriven de la transmisión, y
c) Un documento donde se asuma la obligación de mantener los caracteres pertinentes de la variedad
vegetal o su material de propagación en caso de que se comercialicen y exploten.IP/Q/HND/1, IP/Q2/HND/1,
IP/Q3/HND/1, IP/Q4/HND/1
Page 70
ARTICULO 27.- En caso de una transmisión total,  el beneficiario, cesionario o causahabiente,
asumirá todas las obligaciones y derechos que deriven del titulo de obtentor, con excepción del
derecho a que se refiere el numeral 1o. del Artículo 7 de esta Ley.
ARTICULO 28.- El beneficiario, cesionario o causahabiente podrá ejercitar las acciones legales de
protección a los derechos del obtentor como si fuera el titular, salvo pacto contrario.
CAPITULO IV
DE LAS LICENCIAS DE EMERGENCIA
ARTICULO 29.- Para los efectos de esta ley, se entiende que hay circunstancias de emergencia,
cuando la explotación de una variedad vegetal se considere indispensable para satisfacer las
necesidades básicas de un sector de la población y exista deficiencia en la oferta o abasto.
ARTICULO 30.- En caso de emergencia, la Secretaría procederá en los términos siguientes:
a) Informará al titular de la variedad vegetal o a las personas autorizadas por el,  de la situación de
emergencia y de la necesidad de disponer de la variedad vegetal en las cantidades suficientes que a
juicio de la Secretaría cubran la emergencia. En caso de que muestren su interés en cubrir la
emergencia deberán obligarse a cubrirla en los términos que establezca la Secretaría.
b) En caso de que el titular de la variedad vegetal o sus causahabientes manifiesten no tener
posibilidades o interés en hacerlo, la Secretaría convocará,  mediante licitación pública, a terceros que
tengan interés en hacerlo.
c) El derecho a cubrir la emergencia se otorgará mediante una licencia, por un plazo determinado,
previo al cumplimiento de los requisitos que la Secretaría señale en las convocatorias, entre los  que
se deberá prever el pago de una compensación a favor del titular de la variedad vegetal o su
causahabiente.
d) Al  concluir el plazo para el que fue otorgada la licencia de emergencia, el titular de la variedad
vegetal recuperará automáticamente todos sus derechos.
ARTICULO 31.- El titular de la variedad vegetal sobre la cual se otorgue una licencia de emergencia,
tendrá la obligación de proporcionar al licenciatar io el material de propagación. en ningún caso podrá
este hacer uso de la variedad o del material de propagación para un fin distinto al de la emergencia.
ARTICULO 32.- En las situaciones en que, por la  gravedad y magnitud de la emergencia, un solo
licenciatario no pueda hacer frente a la misma, la Secretaría podrá hacer extensiva la licencia a dos o
más interesados para que, en forma simultanea realicen lo necesario para cubrirla.IP/Q/HND/1, IP/Q2/HND/1,
IP/Q3/HND/1, IP/Q4/HND/1
Page 71
TITULO TERCERO
CAPITULO I
DEL COMITE CALIFICADOR DE VARIEDADES VEGETALES
ARTICULO 33.- El comité se integrará c on los siguientes miembros propietarios:
a) El presidente, el secretario técnico y tres representantes mas, designados por la Secretaría.b)Un representante de la Dirección de Propiedad Intelectual.El comité contará con un secretario de actas, con voz pero sin voto, designado por el presidente. Por
cada propietario se designará a su respectivo suplente.
El cargo de miembro propietario o suplente del comité será estrictamente personal y no podrá
desempeñarse por medio de representantes.
ARTICULO 34.- Las funciones del comité serán las siguientes:1o. Dictaminar la procedencia de las solicitudes de titulo de obtentor y su inscripción en el registro;2o. Establecer  los procedimientos para la realización y evaluación de pruebas técnicas de campo o de
laboratorio.
3o. Dar  su opinión para la formulación de normas oficiales relativas a la caracterización y evaluación
de variedades vegetales con fines de descripción.
4o. Las demás que señale el reglamento de la presente ley.ARTICULO 35.- El comité se reunirá por lo menos cuatro veces al año, o cuando tenga dos o mas
asuntos a tratar, pudiendo sesionar cuantas veces sea convocado por su presidente. Las resoluciones se
tomarán por los votos de dos terceras partes de los miembros presentes.
ARTICULO 36.- Para auxiliarse en sus funciones, el  comité podrá constituir grupos de apoyo técnico
compuestos por especialistas en cada genero o especie y a la vez consultar o tomar referencias de los
países Centroamericanos.
TITULO CUARTO
CAPITULO I
DEL REGISTRO NACIONAL DE VARIEDADES VEGETALES
ARTICULO 37.- La Secretaría establecerá un re gistro que será público y en el que deberán
inscribirse, cuando menos:
1o. La solicitud de expedición del titulo de obtentor.2o.  La constancia de presentación.3o.  El  titulo de obtentor, haciéndose constar:a) La variedad vegetal protegida;IP/Q/HND/1, IP/Q2/HND/1,
IP/Q3/HND/1, IP/Q4/HND/1
Page 72
b) La especie a la que pertenece;
c) Su denominación, vulgar o común y científica, y cualquier cambio aprobado a esta última.d) El nombre y domicilio del titular o titulares o causahabientes de la variedad vegetal, así como el
nombre, domicilio y personalidad, en su caso, de su representante legal.
e) La vigencia y demás datos del titulo de obtentor expedido.4o. La  renuncia de los derechos que confiere el numeral 2o. del Artículo 7 de  esta Ley.5o. Las transmisiones y gravámenes que, en su caso, se realicen de los derechos a que se refiere el
numeral 2o. del Artículo 7 de  esta ley.
6o.  La expedición de licencias de emergencia a que se refiere esta ley.7o.  El  fin de la vigencia de la constancia de presentación o del titulo de obtentor, ya sea por
caducidad o por vencimiento del plazo respectivo, así como la inscripción preventiva de los
procedimientos de nulidad y revocación de un titulo de obtentor y su resolución definitiva.
8o.   La  declaratoria en la que se establezca que las variedades vegetales han pasado al dominio
público.
ARTICULO 38.- Para que surtan efecto  contra terceros, tanto los títulos de obtentor como la
transmisión de derechos, deberán constar en el registro.
ARTICULO 39.- La Secretaría garantizará el acceso  a la información contenida en las inscripciones
del  registro.
ARTICULO 40.- La Secretaría publicará, en el Di ario Oficial  "La Gaceta" y en  los medios que
considere idóneos, las inscripciones que se realicen en el registro, las solicitudes de titulo de obtentor
y cualquier información que considere de interés  sobre  la  materia de la presente Ley.
TITULO QUINTO
CAPITULO I
PROCEDIMIENTOS ADMINISTRATIVOS
ARTICULO 41.- Los procedimientos administra tivos de nulidad, revocación e imposición de
sanciones que establece esta Ley, se substanciarán y resolverán con apego a esta Ley y, en lo no
previsto, en la Ley  de Procedimiento  Administrativo.
ARTICULO 42.- La Secretaría declarará nulo el derecho de obtentor si se comprueba:
1o. Que la variedad no era nueva o distinta ( Artículo 13.) en la fecha de presentación de la solicitud
o, llegado el caso, en la fecha de prioridad.
2o. Que, cuando la concesión del derecho de obtentor se basó esencialmente en las informaciones y
documentos proporcionados  por el solicitante, la variedad no era homogénea o estable en la
mencionada fecha.IP/Q/HND/1, IP/Q2/HND/1,
IP/Q3/HND/1, IP/Q4/HND/1
Page 73
3o. Que el derecho de obtentor fue concedido a una persona que no tenía derecho al mismo, y que el
derechohabiente no entablo o renunció a entablar una demanda de cesión judicial .
Salvo disposición de lo contrario en la presente Ley, el derecho de obtentor declarado nulo se
considerará como no concedido.
Cualquier persona podrá hacer del conocimiento a  la Secretaría de la existencia de hechos que
puedan dar lugar a la nulidad de un titulo de obtentor.
ARTICULO 43.- La Secretaría podrá revocar, pr evia sustentación del procedimiento respectivo, un
titulo de obtentor en cualquier momento por cualquiera de las siguientes circunstancias:
a) Cuando durante dos años no se cubran los aranceles a que se refiere el Artículo 22 de esta Ley.b) Cuando se compruebe que se han alterado los caracteres pertinentes de la variedad vegetal;
c)   Cuando  el titular no entregue a la Secretaría el material de propagación que permita obtener la
variedad vegetal con sus caracteres pertinentes, tal y como hayan sido definidos al concederse el titulo
de obtentor, transcurridos seis meses de la fecha en que fue requerido.
d) Cuando se compruebe que la variedad vegetal ha dejado de cumplir con los requisitos señalados en
los literales  c y d del Artículo 13 de esta Ley.
e) Cuando el obtentor no propone otra denominación adecuada, en caso de cancelación de la
denominación de la variedad después de la concesión del derecho.
ARTICULO 44.- En los procedimientos administ rativos de nulidad, revocación e imposición de
sanciones, se notificará a la contraparte o al posib le perjudicado para que, en un plazo de treinta días
hábiles contados a partir de la notificación, manifieste por escrito lo que a su derecho convenga.
ARTICULO 45.- En los procedimientos administra tivos para la imposición de sanciones por las
infracciones que establece esta Ley, la Secretaría podrá adoptar, además, las siguientes medidas
provisionales:
1o. Ordenar el retiro de la circulación o impedir esta, respecto de variedades vegetales o material de
propagación, con los que se infrinjan los derechos tutelados por esta Ley.
2o. Ordenar que se retiren de la circulación los objetos, empaques, envases, embalajes, papelería,
material publicitario y similares, con los que se infrinja alguno de los derechos tutelados por esta Ley.
3o.  Asegurar los bienes objeto de la violación de los derechos que protege esta Ley.4o.  Ordenar al presunto infractor la suspensión o el cese de los actos que constituyan una violación a
las disposiciones de esta Ley.
En caso de que se haya aplicado cualquiera de estas medidas, se notificara a la parte afectada y a los
interesados, haciéndose constar esta circunstancia en el acta que al efecto se levante.
Si la variedad vegetal o su material de propagación se encuentra en el comercio, los comerciantes
tendrán la obligación de abstenerse de su enajenación a partir de la fecha en que se les notifique la
resolución.IP/Q/HND/1, IP/Q2/HND/1,
IP/Q3/HND/1, IP/Q4/HND/1
Page 74
Igual obligación tendrán los productores, viveristas, fabricantes, importadores y sus distribuidores,
quienes serán responsables de recuperar de inmediato las variedades vegetales o su material de
propagación que ya se encuentre en el comercio.
ARTICULO 46.- La Secretaría podrá ordenar las me didas provisionales a que se refiere el Artículo
anterior, previa solicitud del interesado. Para tales efectos, el solicitante deberá acreditar la existencia
de una violación a sus derechos, o que esta sea inminente, o la posibilidad  de  sufrir un daño
irreparable, o el temor fundado de que las pruebas se destruyan, oculten, pierdan o alteren, así como
cumplir con el otorgamiento de una fianza que irá de acuerdo a lo estipulado en el Reglamento de la
presente Ley, proporcionando la información  que le sea solicitada y demás requisitos que determinen
las disposiciones legales.
La persona contra la que se haya adoptado la medida provisional, podrá presentar contra fianza de
acuerdo al Reglamento de la presente Ley, para responder de los daños y perjuicios que se causen al
solicitante de la misma, a efecto de obtener su levantamiento.
ARTICULO 47.- El solicitante de las medidas provisi onales a que se refiere el articulo 42 de esta Ley,
será responsable del pago de los daños y perjuicios causados a la persona en contra de quien se
hubiesen ejecutado cuando:
1o. La resolución definitiva que hubiese quedado firme sobre el fondo de la controversia, declare que
no existió violación ni amenaza de violación a los derechos del solicitante de la medida.
2o. Se haya solicitado una medida provisional y no se hubiese iniciado el procedimiento
administrativo ante la Secretaría respecto del fondo de la controversia dentro de un plazo de veinte
días, contados a partir de la ejecución de la medida.
ARTICULO 48.- El destino de los bienes asegura dos, así como lo relativo al otorgamiento y
aplicación de la fianza y contra fianza, será conforme a lo que disponga el Reglamento de esta Ley.
ARTICULO 49.- Cuando la Secretaría actúe como árbitro, se integrará una comisión arbitral,
presidida por el titular de la asesoría legal  de la propia Secretaría.
ARTICULO 50.- La comisión arbitral actuará como  amigable componedor, o bien, como árbitro de
estricto derecho, según lo acuerden las partes. Resolverá los asuntos con arreglo a lo dispuesto en esta
Ley y su Reglamento.
TITULO SEXTO
CAPITULO I
DE LAS INFRACCIONES
ARTICULO 51.- La Secretaría impondrá,  por las infracciones que a continuación se indican,  las
multas siguientes:
1o. Modificar la denominación de la variedad vegetal protegida sin autorización de la Secretaría, de
doscientos a dos mil días de salario mínimo.
2o. Ostentarse como titular de una variedad vegetal protegida sin serlo, de quinientos a tres mil días
de salario mínimo.IP/Q/HND/1, IP/Q2/HND/1,
IP/Q3/HND/1, IP/Q4/HND/1
Page 75
3o. Divulgar o comercializar una variedad vegetal como de procedencia extranjera cuando no lo sea o
bien, divulgar o comercializar una variedad vegetal como de procedencia nacional cuando no lo sea,
de trescientos a tres mil días de salario mínimo.
4o. Oponerse a las visitas de verificación que se realicen conforme a esta Ley,  de trescientos a tres
mil días de salario mínimo.
5o. Explotar comercialmente las características o contenido de una variedad vegetal protegida,
atribuyéndolas a otra variedad vegetal que no lo esté, de mil a diez mil días de salario mínimo.
6o. Dejar de cumplir o violar las medidas establecidas en el articulo 45 de esta ley, de mil a diez mil
días de salario mínimo.
7o. Aprovechar o explotar una variedad vegetal protegida, o su material de propagación, para su
producción, distribución o venta sin la autorización del titular, de dos mil a diez mil días de salario
mínimo.
8o.Las demás violaciones a las disposiciones de esta Ley y su Reglamento, de doscientos a cinco mil
días de salario mínimo.
Para estos efectos, se considerará el salario mínimo general vigente en el país, en la fecha de la
infracción.
Para la imposición de las sanciones, la Secretaría tomará en cuenta la gravedad de la infracción, al
igual que los antecedentes, circunstancias personales y situación socioeconómica del infractor. En
caso de reincidencia, se aplicará multa hasta por el doble del limite máximo de la sanción quecorresponda.
CAPITULO II
DISPOSICIONES FINALES
ARTICULO 52.- En tanto el ejecutivo  expida el Reglamento de la presente Ley, se aplicaran, de
manera supletoria y en lo que no la contravenga, las disposiciones administrativas y reglamentariasrelativas de la Ley de la propiedad intelectual.
ARTICULO 53.- Se derogan todas las demás disp osiciones administrativas que se opongan a la
presente ley.
ARTICULO 54.- Sin perjuicio de las disposiciones del articulo 13 literal a), se podrá también
conceder un derecho de obtentor para una variedad que ya no sea nueva en la fecha de entrada en
vigor de la presente Ley respecto de la especie considerada, en las condiciones siguientes:
a) La solicitud deberá ser presentada dentro del año siguiente a la fecha antes citada; yb) La variedad deberá :Haber sido inscrita en Registro Nacional de Variedades  al que se refiere la ley
de semillas o haber sido objeto de un derecho de obtentor o ser objeto de una solicitud de derecho de
obtentor en un estado o una organización intergubernamental parte en el convenio internacional  para
la protección de obtenciones vegetales, a reserva de que la solicitud conduzca a la concesión delderecho de obtentor.
ARTICULO 55. La duración del derecho de obtentor concedido en virtud del presente Artículo se
calculará a partir de la fecha de inscripción mencionada, o de la fecha de concesión del derecho de
obtentor.IP/Q/HND/1, IP/Q2/HND/1,
IP/Q3/HND/1, IP/Q4/HND/1
Page 76
ARTICULO 56. Cuando un derecho de obtentor haya sido concedido en virtud del presente Artículo,
el titular deberá conceder  licencias, en condiciones razonables, para permitir la continuación de
cualquier explotación comenzada de buena  fe por un tercero antes de la mencionadapresentación de la solicitud.
ARTICULO 57.- La Direcci ón de Propiedad Intelectual, remitirá a la Secretaría, dentro de los seis
meses de la entrada en vigor de la presente Ley, las solicitudes de los obtentores de variedades
vegetales en todos los géneros y especies, que le hayan sido presentadas con anterioridad a la entrada
en vigor de este ordenamiento.
ARTICULO 58. Las solicitudes de patentes para prot eger variedades vegetales que se encuentren en
trámite al amparo de la Ley de fomento y protección de la propiedad industrial, los solicitantes podrán
acogerse a los beneficios que otorga este ordenamiento dentro de los seis meses siguientes a su
entrada en vigor, mediante petición por escrito presentada ante la Secretaría de Agricultura y
Ganadería.
ARTICULO 59. Los derechos adquiridos por las patentes que se hubieren otorgado, serán respetados
íntegramente.
ARTICULO 60. La presente Ley entrará en vigencia a partir del  día de su publicación en el diario
oficial la gaceta.
Dado en la ciudad de Tegucigalpa, Municipio del Distrito Central, en el Salón de Sesiones del
Congreso Nacional a los        del mes de          del 2000
RAFAEL PINEDA PONCE
PRESIDENTE
JOSE ALFONSO HERNÁNDEZ CORDOVA ROLANDO CARDENAS PAZ
SECRETARIO SECRETARIOIP/Q/HND/1, IP/Q2/HND/1,
IP/Q3/HND/1, IP/Q4/HND/1
Page 77
ANNEX I
Quantities of Products Seized
1996 to 2001
Description of Product Quantity
Phonograms
VideosCompact discs
Play station cassettes
Trademarks (pharmaceuticals)
Equipment and materials12,868
7,216
541
408
500
300
JUDICIAL PROCEEDINGS INSTITUTED
1997 - 2001
Place Number Remarks
Tegucigalpa
Comayagüela
CeibaCholuteca
Juticalpa
San Pedro Sula
Santa Rosa de Copán
Danlí9
15
14
1
10
1
23 trials ( Plenario )
Total 43IP/Q/HND/1, IP/Q2/HND/1
IP/Q3/HND/1, IP/Q4/HND/1
Page 78ANNEX II
Seizures of Unlawful Material
1996-2001
Total seized Total by product Place of seizure Description of
product1996-1997
Amount in
US$.1998- 2001
Amount in
US$.US$ Lps US$ Lps
Tegucigalpa and
ComayagüelaRegional Ceiba
Regional Choluteca
Santa Rosa de CopánPhonograms
""
"335,000.00
6,126.087,391.30
26,086374,604.34 5,244,460.76
Tegucigalpa and
ComayagüelaRegional Ceiba
Regional Choluteca
Santa Rosa de CopánPhonograms
""
"125,740.57
44,146.75
4,578.00
19,762.59194,227.91 2,699,767.95 568,832,25 7,944,288.71
Tegucigalpa and
Comayagüela
Regional San Pedro Sula
OtherVideos
"
"45,520.00
1,304.35
13,026.1859,850.53 59,850.53 59,850.53 825,937.31
Tegucigalpa and
Comayagüela
Regional San Pedro SulaEquipment and
materials
"21,735.51
14,388.4936,124.00 36,124.00 36,124.00 502,123.60
GRAND TOTAL
SEIZURES664,806.78 9,272,349.62
__________