Trade and Service Marks

– Law No. 2385 of January 17, 1924, revised by the law of January 31, 1946.
– Law No. 152 / L R of July 19, 1939.
– Decree No. 245 of February 23, 1983.
– Law No. 324 of February 12, 2024 (2024 Budget Law).

Membership in International Conventions

– Paris Convention for the Protection of Industrial Property, London Act, and Articles 13 to 30 Stockholm Act.
– Madrid Agreement for the Repression of False or Deceptive Indications of Source on Goods, London Act.
– Nice Agreement for the International Classification of Goods and Services, Nice Act, since April 8, 1961.
– Convention Establishing the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO), since December 30, 1986.

Filing

Types of marks: industrial and commercial marks, collective marks.

Service marks: registrable.

Applicant: may be any physical person or body corporate.

Foreigners and nationals not living in the country: must appoint a representative residing in the country.

Right to the mark: prior use confers priority rights. The rights derived from a trademark registration are vested exclusively in the registrant unless contested by prior users of the mark.

Exceptions to protection: marks contrary to public order and morals, national and foreign decorations.

Classification: the International Classification (11th Edition). A single application may cover several classes on payment of an additional fee.

Priority: may be claimed at the time of filing or within a period of two months from the filing date.

Filing requirements for an application (to be sent to resident agent):
1. Power of attorney, duly legalized up to a Lebanese Consulate;
2. List of goods and services;
3. 6 prints;
4. A certified copy of the priority document in Convention cases; it must be filed within a period of three months from the application date.

Note: as of April 10, 2015, any application related to IP matters cannot be accepted unless it is accompanied by a power of attorney duly legalized up to a Lebanese Consulate. As of May 10, 2022, any trademark that includes a wording other than Arabic, English or French, must be accompanied by an official Arabic translation of that wording.

Electronic filing: available since 2013. 

Electronic signatures: are accepted.

For a change of name or address:
1. An original extract from the Commercial Register or Notary Certificate evidencing the change and its date, legalized up to a Lebanese Consulate;
2. Power of attorney, legalized up to a Lebanese Consulate.

Examination Procedure

Examination: all applications are subjected to an official examination for conflicting prior trademark rights and absolute grounds. The search report is notified to the applicant who may decide to proceed with the application despite the cited antecedents. The administration is not entitled to reject applications on relative grounds. 

Disclaimers: available.  

Letters of consent: are accepted, can be simply signed.

Appeal: a provision is made for appeal against any decision of the Minister of Economy and Commerce refusing an application within thirty days from the date of being notified.

Opposition: not provided for.

Assignment and license: must be recorded on the Trademark Register to be effective against third parties. The registration certificate should be returned and a new title shall be issued showing the name of the assignee.

Granting

Once the trademark application is accepted, the relevant certificate of registration will be due for issuance (in paper format only).

Beginning of protection: date of filing.

Duration: for industrial and commercial marks: 10 years, always renewable for periods of ten years; for collective marks: 15, 30, 45 or 60 years, always renewable for periods of fifteen years. A grace period of three months from the expiry date is allowed only to the nationals of the International Union of Paris, during which the application for renewal should be filed.

Publication of trademark: is effected in the Official Gazette usually after the issuance of the certificate of registration.

Modification of Protection after Registration

Use: no legal provisions for the cancellation of non-used registered trademarks. However, two recent court decisions have considered that extended non-use is equivalent to an abandonment of the mark.

Cancellation action: may be instituted by any interested person at any time during the term of protection on such grounds as lack of distinctiveness.

Disputes about ownership: any person who has been using a mark prior to its registration may within a period of five years from the filing date, request the court to remove the improperly registered mark.