Trade Marks Act, 1963

• Permanent Page URL

Recognition and registration of trade mark agents.

69.—(1) Whenever under this Act any act has to be done by or to any person in connection with a trade mark or any procedure relating to a trade mark or the registration thereof, the act (if not excepted by the rules) may, under and in accordance with rules made under this section or, in particular cases, with the consent of the Minister, be done by or to an agent of that person duly authorised in the prescribed manner and, if acting for gain, registered in the register kept under subsection (2) of this section.

(2) There shall be kept at the Office a register which shall be called the register of trade mark agents, and no person shall, either alone or in partnership with any other person, practise, describe himself, hold himself out, or permit himself to be described or held out, as a trade mark agent, unless he is registered in the register of trade mark agents, and a partnership shall not so practise, describe itself, hold itself out, or permit itself so to be described or held out, unless all the partners are so registered.

(3) Any person who—

(a) resides in the State,

(b) has a place of business in the State,

(c) is not an alien (within the meaning of section 2 of the Irish Nationality and Citizenship Act, 1956 ),

(d) possesses the prescribed educational and professional qualifications, and

(e) complies with the prescribed conditions,

shall be eligible to be registered in the register of trade mark agents, and a partnership shall be so eligible if every partner thereof is registered in accordance with this section, and a person or partnership so eligible shall on application in the prescribed form and manner and on payment of the prescribed fee, be so registered.

(4) Notwithstanding subsection (3) of this section any person who has been in continuous practice as a trade mark agent in the State for a period of five years before the commencement of this Act and makes application (in the prescribed form and manner and upon payment of the prescribed fee) for registration within twelve months from the commencement of this Act shall be eligible to be registered in the register of trade mark agents.

(5) Any person who at any time after the expiration of three months from the commencement of this Act contravenes this section shall be guilty of an offence under this section and shall be liable on summary conviction thereof to a fine not exceeding, in the case of a first offence, twenty pounds and, in the case of a second or subsequent offence, one hundred pounds.

(6) Any person registered in the register of trade mark agents who—

(a) ceases to be eligible to be so registered, or

(b) applies to be removed from the register,

may be removed by the Controller from the register of trade mark agents, but no person shall be so removed (except on his own application) without being given an opportunity of being heard.

(7) (a) Where a person registered in the register of trade mark agents is found by the Controller, after due inquiry by the Controller (including the hearing by the Controller of representations, if any, by the person), to have been guilty of conduct disgraceful to that person in a professional respect, the Controller may, if he sees fit, decide that the name of that person should be erased from the register of trade mark agents.

(b) On making a decision under this subsection, the Controller shall forthwith send by post to the person to whom the decision relates, at his address as stated in the register of trade mark agents, a notice in writing stating the decision, the date thereof and the reason therefor.

(c) A person to whom a decision of the Controller under this subsection relates may, within the period of fourteen days beginning on the date of the decision, on giving notice to the Controller in the prescribed manner apply to the Court for cancellation of the decision, and if he so applies—

(i) the Court, on the hearing of the application, may either—

(I) cancel the decision, or

(II) confirm the decision and direct the Controller to erase the name of such person from the register of trade mark agents,

(ii) if at any time the Controller satisfies the Court that such person has delayed unduly in proceeding with the application, the Court shall, unless it sees good reason to the contrary, confirm the decision and direct the Controller to erase the name of such person from the register,

(iii) the Court may, subject to section 54 of this Act, direct how the costs of the application are to be borne.

(d) Where a person to whom a decision of the Controller under this subsection relates does not, within the period of fourteen days beginning on the date of the decision, apply to the Court for cancellation of the decision, the Controller may apply ex parte to the Court for confirmation of the decision and, if the Controller so applies, the Court, on the hearing of the application, shall, unless it sees good reason to the contrary, confirm the decision and direct the Controller to erase the name of such person from the register of trade mark agents.

(e) The decision of the Court on an application under this subsection shall be final, save that, by leave of the Court, an appeal, by the Controller or the person concerned, from the decision shall lie to the Supreme Court on a specified question of law.

(f) On erasing the name of a person from the register of trade mark agents under this subsection, the Controller shall forthwith send by post to such person, at his address as stated in the register of trade mark agents, notice in writing of the erasure.

(g) A person whose name has been erased from the register of trade mark agents under this subsection may at any time be restored to the register by special direction of the Controller but not otherwise, and when a person is so restored to the register, the Controller may attach to the restoration such conditions (including the payment of a fee not exceeding the fee which would be payable by such person if he was then being registered for the first time) as the Controller thinks fit.

(8) A person (in this subsection referred to as an agent) duly authorised by any person under subsection (1) of this section to act as his agent may (subject to any provision to the contrary in any agreement between the agent and that person), on giving notice to the Controller and that person, cease to act as agent for that person.

(9) The Minister may by order make rules under this section for the management of the register of trade mark agents, and may by such rules prescribe any matter or thing referred to in this section as prescribed, and in particular may so prescribe the educational and professional qualifications and the conditions for eligibility for registration in the register of trade mark agents, and the maximum fees which may be charged by any person registered in the register of trade mark agents for such services in connection with the registration of trade marks as may be specified in such rules.

(10) (a) A person who is registered in the register of trade mark agents shall not be guilty of an offence under section 58 of the Solicitors Act, 1954 , by reason only of the preparation by him for use in proceedings under this Act before the Controller or the Court of any document other than a deed.

(b) Notwithstanding subsection (5) of this section, it shall not be an offence under this section for the legal personal representative of a deceased trade mark agent to carry on business or practise in the name of that deceased trade mark agent for a period not exceeding three years from the death of that trade mark agent, or for such further period (if any) as the Court allows, if the legal personal representative is himself a trade mark agent or employs a trade mark agent to manage the business or practice on his behalf.

(11) Notwithstanding subsection (3) of this section, the Minister may, with a view to the fulfilment by the Government on behalf of the State of any international agreement to which the State is a party, by order declare that a citizen of a particular state (being a state which is also a party to that international agreement) shall, if he otherwise complies with that subsection, be eligible to be registered in the register of trade mark agents.

(12) Notwithstanding subsection (4) of section 10 of the Petty Sessions (Ireland) Act, 1851 , summary proceedings for an offence under this section may be instituted within twelve months from the date of the offence.