Georgia
Georgia is a Southern Caucasian country, which position has led to it developing into an international transport hub, with a free economic market and ample opportunity for business. Official implementation of electronic transactions facilitates obtaining protection and defending intellectual property rights, as well as offers reduction of costs due to 20% discount for the official fees. The national currency of Georgia is lari.
The Georgian Patent and Trademark Office conducts correspondence only in Georgian language. Any foreign applicant needs to appoint a local Patent Attorney for handling its IP matters before the Office, unless they have a permanent residence or registered address in Georgia. The appointment should be confirmed with an original signed Power of Attorney. For electronic applications, a color copy of signed Power of Attorney is sufficient, but the original one may be requested by the examiner.
Average examination timeframe by the Georgian Patent and Trademark Office is about 2 years for inventions, about 1 year for utility models, about 12 months for trademarks and about 8 months for industrial designs. Trademark and industrial design prosecution involves publishing the trademark for oppositions by third parties for 3 months, which is included into the above timeframe. Accelerated procedure is available for trademarks and industrial designs, with accelerated examination taking about 2-4 weeks.
When an IP-related matter proceeds to court, they are considered by the competent civil, administrative and criminal courts, depending on the case. Court proceedings in the first instance court can take about a year, and about two years in the second instance. An attorney well-versed in the local court practice will ensure protection of the client’s best interest in any matter.
Services
- Inventions or utility models, through national patent applications or PCT entry
- Trademarks, through national trademark applications or Madrid registrations
- Industrial designs, through national applications or the Hague System
- Appellations of origin and geographical indications, through national applications or in accordance with the Lisbon agreement
- Copyright
- Computer programs
- Plant varieties and animal breeds