CELEX: 51991PC0481
Language: en
Date: 1991-11-28
Title: Proposal for a COUNCIL DECISION on the deferment of the date on which the laws of the Member States must comply with Council Directive 89/104/EEC of 21 December 1988 to approximate the laws of the Member States relating to Trade Marks

COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES
                                      C0MC9Î) 481 final
                                      Brussels, 28 November 1991
                         Proposal for a
                        COUNCIL DECISION
           on the deferment of the date on which the laws
                of the Member States must comply with
          Council Directive 89/104/EEC of ^ c e r t b e r 19B8
            to approximate the laws of the Member States
                        relating to Trade Marks
                  (presented by the Commission)
 ---pagebreak---                                     - 1 -
                           EXPLANATORY MEMORANDUM
1. The objective of this Communication is to request the Council to decide
   that the date of implementation of Council Directive 89/104/EEC of
   21 December 1988 on the harmonization of the laws of the Member States
   relating to trade marks be deferred from 28 December 1991 until
   31 December 1992.
2. Council Directive 89/104/EEC provides in Article 16(1), that the Member
   States must comply with its provisions not later than 28 December 1991.
   Paragraph 2 of this Article, however, contains a provision in accordance
   with which the Council, acting on a proposal from the Commission, may
   defer the said date until 31 December 1992 at the latest.
   This provision has been included, exceptionally, in the Directive to
   ensure the envisaged "parallelism" between the Community Trade Mark
   Regulation and the Trade Mark Directive.  The parallelism implies that
   the date from which Community Trade Mark applications may be filed should
   be the same as the date of the entry into force of the national
   legislative measures mandated by Directive 89/104/EEC.
   The reason behind this exceptional provision has been included as a
   statement of the Council and the Commission in the minutes of the Council
   meeting at which the Directive was adopted.
3. Recently, the Commission received a request from e Member State to
   propose the deferment of the date of implementation in accordance with
   Article 16(2) of the said Directive.
   The Commission realises that Community Trade Mark applications can not be
   filed before 28 December 1991 and that it is possible that that may not
   even be the case by 31 December 1992.  The latter is, however, not yet
   excluded if the necessary decisions for the adopt on of the Community
   Trade Mark system were to be taken shortly.
 ---pagebreak---    Furthermore, it should be underlined that the deferment of the date of
   implementation until 31 December 1992 would in any case have the effect
   that the parallelism between the date of implementation of the Directive
   and tho date on which applications for Community Trade Marks may be filed
   will be assured for, at least, another 12 months.
4. The deferment of the date of implementation until 31 December 1992 would
   still meet with the objectives set for the completion of the Internal
   Market by 1992.  In this light, the Commission notes that any further
   deferment of the date of implementation is not foreseen by the Directive
   nor shall it be proposed by the Commission.
5. Proposal for a Council Decision
   Accordingly, the Commission proposes that the Council adopts the attached
   draft Decision.
 ---pagebreak---                   -3-
                     PROPOSAL
                       FOR A
                 COUNCIL DECISION
 on the deferment of the date on which the laws
      of the Member States must comply with
Council Directive 89/104/EEC of 21 December 1988
  to approximate the laws of the Member States
             relating to Trade Marks
 ---pagebreak---                                      -4-
THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES
Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Economic Community,
Having regard to First Council Directive 89/104/EEC of 21 December 1988 to
approximate the laws of the Member States relating to trade marks^ 1 ), in
particular Article 16(2) thereof,
Having regard to the proposal from the Commission,
whereas under Article 16(1) of Directive 89/104/EEC the Member States shall
bring into force the laws, regulations and administrative provisions
necessary to comply with this Directive not later than 28 December 1991,
whereas under Article 16(2) of Directive 89/104/EEC, on a proposal from the
Commission, the Council, acting by qualified majority, may defer the date
referred to in Article 16(1) until 31 December 1992 at the latest,
whereas this exceptional provision has been included in
Directive 89/104/EEC exclusively to ensure, if necessary, that the date of
the entry into force of the legislative measures mandated by it should, as
far as possible, be aligned with the date as from which it will be possible
for Community trade mark applications to be filed,
whereas the Commission's proposal for a Council Regulation on the Community
trade mark^ 2 ) has not yet been adopted,
whereas it is expected that the said Regulation will be adopted shortly,
whereas It seems therefore appropriate to defer the date on which the
Member States shall bring into force the legislative measures mandated by
Directive 89/104/EEC until 31 December 1992 so that the objective, referred
to above, may be pursued,
(1) OJ No. L40 of 11 February 1989, p. 1.
(2) OJ No. C351 of 31 December 1980, p. 1 and OJ No. C230 of
    31 August 1984, p. 1.
 ---pagebreak--- whereas the objectives set for the completion of the Internal Market by
1992 continue to be respected notwithstanding the deferment, until
31 December 1992, of the date on which the laws, regulations and
administrative provisions of the Member States must comply with Directive
89/104/EEC.
HAS ADOPTED THIS DECISION
                                 Article 1
The date referred to In Article 16(1) of First CounciI Directive 89/104/EEC
of 21 December 1988 to approximate the laws of the Member States relating
to trade marks shall be deferred until 31 December 1992.
                                 Article 2
This Decision is addressed to the Member States
Done at Brussels,                                For the Council
                                                   The President
 ---pagebreak---                               . c-
           Note on Impact for small and medium sized enterprises
The object of this Communication is to recommend the Council to decide that
the date on which the laws of the Member States must comply with Council
Directive 89/104/EEC be deferred from 28 December 1991 until
31 December 1992.
Thus, this concerns an act which has no effect on small and medium sized
enterprises or on employment.
 ---pagebreak---  ---pagebreak---                                      -3-
                                                                      ISSN 0254-1475
                                                               COM(91) 481 final
                                                      DOCUMENTS
EN                                                                               06
                                 Catalogue number : CB-CO-91-531-EN-C
                                                             ISBN 92-77-77889-X
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