NEWSLETTER-2020-metin

384 NEWSLETTER 2020 toon characters, such as Winnie the Pooh, Betty Boop, or the name of a famous work of an author (such as Crime and Punishment), are sought to be registered as a trademark by someone else, the application may be refused upon opposition. Unauthorized registration of the business name of another com- pany may also be prevented using this paragraph of the Article. How- ever, the application may only be refused for the related goods and services after comparing the activities of the company in the registry record with the goods and services that are within the scope of the trademark application. Trademark Applications filed in Bad Faith Pursuant to Article 6/9 of the IPC, “Trademark applications filed in bad faith shall be refused upon opposition.” Examples of these cases are i) trademark applications that are original and cannot be randomly selected or created, and which contain phrases or devices registered or used in Turkey or abroad; ii) trademark applications that are likely to benefit from trademark recognition; iii) the same or indistinguish- able trademark applications that were made by someone who has a contract, pre-contract, or trade or employee-employer relationship with the prior trademark owner. The situation in which the trademark applicant makes trademark applications systematically for trademarks that are registered in Turkey or abroad, and which have high level of recognition, will be accepted as trademark applications filed in bad faith, as well. Other Situations Although it is generally not seen in practice, according to Article 6/7 of the IPC, “An application for registration of a trademark that is identical to or similar to a collective mark or a guarantee mark with identical or similar goods or services, and which is filed within three years following the expiration of the protection of the collective mark or guarantee mark due to non-renewal, shall be refused upon opposi- tion of the previous right holder.” and pursuant to Article 6/8 of the IPC, “An application for registration of a trademark that is identical to or similar to a registered trademark with identical or similar goods