On November 13, 2019, the French government published Order No.
2019-1169, followed by an implementing Decree on December 9, 2019.
The purpose of this regulation was to incorporate into French law
the EU Directive 2015/2436 and to simplify certain aspects of
French trademark law and procedure.
Unless noted otherwise, the following changes were effective from
December 11, 2019:
Fees
- Official fees have changed from a
flat fee for one to three classes (plus an individual fee for each
additional class) to an individual fee for each class.
Representation of the Mark
- The former law required a strict
graphical representation of the mark, whereas the new law allows
any representation that enables any person to determine
"precisely and clearly" the scope of protection. This
change allows for the registration of movement or multimedia
marks.
