Trademark Protection in Georgia
Trademark protection in Georgia is built as a complete system in the Georgian Law on Trademarks: Article 3 defines what counts as a mark and how it may be protected — by registration or on the basis of an international agreement; Article 6 establishes the content and scope of the exclusive right; Article 7 — its lawful limits; and Article 24 — the genuine-use requirement that keeps the protection alive. This page surveys the system from the owner's perspective: how the right to the mark is acquired, what its holder may prohibit to others, and where the boundary of that right lies.
What a Trademark Is and How It Is Protected — Article 3
A trademark is a symbol or a combination of symbols represented graphically and distinguishing the goods or services of one enterprise from those of another. The symbol may be a word or words, including a person's name; letters; numerals; sounds; an image; or a three-dimensional figure — including the form of the goods or packaging, as well as other external design of the goods using a colour or combination of colours. The law thus recognizes a broad palette: from a written word to a sound image and the shape of packaging.
Two routes to protection exist: a trademark is protected through its registration at Sakpatenti or on the basis of an international agreement. A special rule is the exception: trademarks universally known in Georgia are protected without registration, in accordance with the relevant norm of the Paris Convention, and a mark's recognition as universally known is made by the appellate chamber of Sakpatenti or by a court, within its competence, at the request of an interested person. The owner of a famous mark therefore receives protection on the Georgian market even without registration — through the official recognition of notoriety.
The Content of the Exclusive Right — Article 6
The owner's exclusive right to a mark protected by registration arises from the date of its registration. The holder may prohibit a third party from using, without his consent and in civil circulation, a sign that stands in the following relation to his protected mark: it is identical and the goods are identical; it is identical and the goods are so similar that a likelihood of confusion — including confusion through association — arises; it is similar and the goods are identical or so similar that confusion arises; and finally, it is identical or similar to a mark with a reputation in Georgia — regardless of the identity or similarity of the goods — where that use unfairly gives the third party advantageous conditions or harms the reputation or distinctiveness of the protected mark.
The objects of prohibition are equally broad: infringement includes affixing the mark on goods or packaging; offering, putting into circulation, storing for that purpose, importing or exporting goods bearing the mark; offering or rendering services with the mark; using the mark in advertising or on business papers; and using the mark as a firm name or part of one. In addition, without the owner's consent a third party may not affix an identical or similar sign on packaging materials, labels or tags, nor offer, circulate or import-export such means — the market in counterfeit packaging is thus prohibited independently.
The Lawful Limits of the Right — Article 7
The exclusive right is not absolute. The holder may not prohibit a third party from using in civil circulation: his own name or address, where the third party is a natural person; a non-distinctive symbol or a symbol designating the kind, quality, quantity, property, value, purpose, geographical origin, place or time of sale or other characteristic of the goods; and the protected mark where it is necessary for identifying or referring to the goods — including where goods marked with it are used as a component or spare part.
The exhaustion rule completes the picture: the holder has no right to prohibit use of the mark on goods put into circulation directly by him or with his consent — unless the characteristics of the goods were changed or their quality impaired. These limits operate only where the third party uses the mark in accordance with the principle of honest conduct of entrepreneurial activity — good faith is thus the central measure of this balance.
Genuine Use — Article 24
The life of protection depends on genuine use. Use means use of the mark by the owner, by a licensee, and by a third party with the owner's consent. Also deemed use is the use of the registered mark with slightly differing elements that do not alter its distinctive character, and the affixation of the mark on goods or packaging intended for export from Georgia. All these actions must be carried out in such volume that they are considered real use of the mark in the market — a formal act cannot sustain protection.
Frequently Asked Questions
Below we answer the questions most frequently raised about trademark protection.
Can a famous mark be protected without registration?
Yes — marks universally known in Georgia are protected without registration in accordance with the Paris Convention; notoriety is recognized by Sakpatenti's appellate chamber or by a court at the request of an interested person.
When does the exclusive right arise?
From the date of registration of the mark; from that moment the holder may prohibit third parties from using an identical or similar sign in circulation in the cases defined by law.
Does the right bar use of another's own name?
No — a natural person may use his own name and address, just as descriptive symbols designating the characteristics of goods are free — where used in good faith.
What counts as genuine use of a mark?
Use by the owner, a licensee or a consenting third party in such volume that it is genuinely visible in the market; use with minor differences that do not alter distinctive character, and affixation on export goods, are added to it.
How We Help on Legal.ge
Trademark protection begins with the right strategy: registration, recognition of notoriety or the international route — each case has its own advantageous variant. The specialists at Legal.ge will explain the operation of Articles 3, 6, 7 and 24 of the law, assess your mark, and help both with stopping infringements and with defending against unjustified demands. Contact us through the Legal.ge form.