Non-Use Defence In Opposition Proceedings In Turkey

In 2017, both the Industrial Property Code No. 6769 (the IPC) and the Regulation on the Implementation of the IPC (the Regulation) were published and entered into force, uniting all IP rights in one Code which were previously regulated by different decree-laws.

The non-use defence in opposition proceedings was introduced with the IPC. According to the IPC if the trade mark claimed to be similar to the application is registered for more than 5 years as of the application date (or priority date) of the opposed application, upon request of the applicant, the Turkish Patent and Trademark Office (the Office) shall ask the opponent to prove the effective use in Turkey on the relevant goods and/or services within the scope of the trade mark relied upon the opposition.