The broad ax. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1895-19??, 1916-08-12
STATE OF ILLINOIS

countries, which will meet at Bue,oS
the question of legislation necessarv
or desirable for improving the protec.
ton accorded to trademark pronertv
in these countries.
This Association was reuuested :,
January last to submit for the consid-
Grafton of the United States section of
the Commission, any suggestions ar
recommendations that it might caro-
to make, relative to means of improv.
ing the protection now accorded 10
trademarks in the Latin-American
| Republics
The opinion that no legislation in
this direction was necessary, but only
ratification of the Pan-American con.
vention of 1910 bulletin, vol. 6. n
S66; IL, p. 15) had been expressed to
the commission by important author.
tiles conyersant with this subject
This view has been well expressed in
an article published in the Scientific
American of February II, 1916, where
In the convention was referred to as
framed practically to pre-
vent piracy of trademarks of one
country by dishonest traders of anv
other country"
With this view, the Association
found itself unable to agree. In fact
the most the convention will accom-
plish when it is adopted is to provide
a scheme, automatic as far as the own
er of trademark is concerned, where
by his registration will be extended
from his own country to the other
| countries of the union. But this will
merely enable him to obtain in one
, registration what he now obtains as
a result of several registrations. It
VIII not alter in any material meas
ure his standing as the owner of a
registered trademark in any of the
countries. What protection will be &C.
corded to him as the owner of a trade
mark registered in country, will still
depend upon the local law of that
country, therefore, the fundamental
defect in the situation must still be
looked for, even after the ratification
of the convention, in the statutes of
the several countries.
Thus, Article v of the convention
forbids the registration of certain
marks, but it concludes with a SEN
tence which makes the prohibition
subject to the laws of the several
states.
Article VIII provides for the prose
cution of infringements "in accord
ance with the laws of the state where
in the offence is committed" but if the
laws of the state where the offence is
committed, provide for the prosecution
of infringements, no International con-
vention is necessary to give to the
party injured the right to resort to
the courts for relief. There is no Lat
in-American country at the present
time where a citizen of the United
States, or citizen of any other Latin
American country does not already
enjoy the same rights in this respect
as a native. Moreover, the Article af-
fords no greater relief than is already
provided in the law.
Article TX attempts to provide the
solution for questions of conflicting
rights in trademarks, but it can hard
ly be made operative, where the relief
1t is intended to accord is directly con-
trary to the statutes in force in the
particular country.
These illustrations merely show that
the protection of trademarks in these
countries must continue to depend pri-
marily upon the local laws, after the
ratification of this convention, quite as
much as before. Hence the import
ance OF legislation in the individual
countries for the purpose of affording
the greatest measure of protection
there to foreign owners of trade
marks.
This view of the subject, was pre-
sented to the commission, together
with the history of the work done by
the Association in procuring revisions
OF the trademark laws in Latin-Amer-
lean countries, and copies of statutes
and proposed statutes dealing with
this subject, to wit, the laws of Eeua-
dor, 1908; Salvador, 1910, and the pro-
posed Colombian and Gillian laws, to
the enactment of which the Associa-
ton has been for some years directing
its efforts
1t is hoped that with this material
before it, the commission will see the
need of positive legislation in the sew
eral countries, and will not be content
to rest with the recommendation for
the ratification of the convention OF
1910.