General Information | Patents of Invention
Trade & Service Marks | Industrial Designs | Domain Names
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General Information

Area: 65,300 sq. km.
Population: 3,709,000 inhabitants.
Capital: Vilnius.
Language: Lithuanian.
Currency: Litas.

GENERAL REMARKS

Lithuania was made subject by Russia at the beginning of the 19th century. After World War I, Lithuania proclaimed independence in 1918. In 1940 it was incorporated into the USSR. The Lithuanian nation resisted the violence and political assimilation of the Soviet regime and in March 1990 proclaimed the re-establishment of independence.
New member of the European Union as of May 1, 2004.

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Patents of Invention

LEGAL BASIS

• Patent Law of January 18, 1994, in force since February 1, 1994, amended on December 23, 1997, June 15, 2000, December 19, 2000 and October 30, 2001.

MEMBERSHIP IN INTERNATIONAL CONVENTIONS

• Paris Convention (Stockholm Act), since May 22, 1994.
• PCT, since July 5, 1994.
• Budapest Treaty, since May 9, 1998.
• European Patent Convention (EPO), since December 1, 2004.

FILING REQUIREMENTS (to be sent to resident agent for filing an application)

• Power of Attorney (no legalization);
• Specification with claims and abstract for translation into Lithuanian - 3 copies;
• Drawings (if any) - 3 copies;
• Priority document (if any);
• A document on the deposit of biological material in a depository institution (if applicable).

REMARKS

National Phase of PCT: under Chapter I: 31 months; under Chapter II: 31 months.
Validity: issued after formal examination only - valid for 20 years from the filing date.
Annuities: are to be paid from the third year.
Opposition: not provided for.

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Trade and Service Marks

LEGAL BASIS

• Law on Trademarks of October 10, 2000, in force since January 1, 2001, amended on October 22, 2002, and February 19, 2004.

MEMBERSHIP IN INTERNATIONAL CONVENTIONS

• Paris Convention for the Protection of Industrial Property, since May 22, 1994.
• Nice Agreement, since February 22, 1997.
• Madrid Protocol Relating to the Madrid Agreement for the International Registration of Marks, since November 15, 1997.
• Trademark Law Treaty, since April 27, 1998.

FILING REQUIREMENTS (to be sent to resident agent for filing an application)

• Power of Attorney (no legalization);
• 8 reproductions of the sign, size 8 x 8 cm (if the mark is in color, 2 additional black/white copies);
• List of goods and services, according to the international classification;
• The priority document, if any.

REMARKS

Kinds of protection: trade marks comprising a word or device or a combination of both, two and three-dimensional designations. Service marks are registrable.
Classification: International.
Obligation to use the registered mark: compulsory. Non-use during any five-year period of effective registration allows any interested party to require cancellation of the registration.
Duration - renewals: 10-year period from the filing date, renewable for further periods of ten years.
Opposition: may be filed by any interested person within three months of the publication (three months after publication in the WIPO Gazette of International Marks, for international registrations), with the Division of Appeals.

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Industrial Designs

LEGAL BASIS

• Law on Designs of November 7, 2002, in force since January 1, 2003; amendments of April 29, 2004.

MEMBERSHIP IN INTERNATIONAL CONVENTIONS

• Paris Convention (Stockholm Act), since May 22, 1994.

FILING REQUIREMENTS (to be sent to resident agent for filing an application)

• Power of Attorney (no legalization);
• Name and address of the applicant;
• Name and address of the creator of the design;
• Photos and graphic representations;
• Description of the industrial design;
• Document certifying powers of the representative;
• Document confirming the transfer of the author's rights (if applicable);
• Document confirming the payment of fees.

REMARKS

Duration - renewals: after formal examination: 5 years. Extension: four additional 5-year periods.
Opposition: has to be filed with the State Patent Bureau's Appeals Division within three months from the date of publication. The decision of the Division of Appeals may be contested in court (final decision).

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Domain Names

LEGAL BASIS

• There is no specific legislation although some regulations on the organization and management of country code top-level domain names do exist.

FILING

• ccTLD: .lt
• Applicant: individuals and legal entities.
• Local Presence: not required.

REMARKS

Duration - renewals: one year, renewable.
Uniform dispute resolution procedure: none.

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If you wish more detailed information concerning intellectual property protection in this territory please contact us or order Katzarov’s Manual on Industrial Property®.

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