In the expansion of the Madrid Union in Latin America, there are two milestones: first, the accession of the United States of America, where the Protocol entered into force in 2003[1], and secondly the adoption of Spanish as a working language, which came into force in 2004[2].
During the meeting held on September 25, 2003, the Madrid Union Assembly decided to include the Spanish language because it would make the system more attractive for the Spanish-speaking countries and users. The Assembly considered the fact that Spanish is the official language in twenty countries encompassing more than six hundred and sixty million persons, of which at the time only two -Cuba and Spain- were members of the Madrid system.
From 2003 onwards, American users of the system have incessantly filed applications under the Madrid Protocol, and the U.S.A. soon became one of the leading applicant countries –if not the leading country– shortly after having adhered to the treaty[3].
The system’s advantages accrue in two different scenarios when filing applications in a country that has adhered to the Madrid Protocol:
- A person that has filed an application in said country may apply, via the home PTO, to register the mark in the International Register, thus obtaining eventually protection in all designated countries (as long as all requirements have been met). In this regard, it must be borne in mind that, albeit few, there are multinational companies of Latin American origin -which in certain studies have been called “trans-Latin” companies– that are expanding strongly in the global economy, and for whom this alternative route may be quite advantageous.
- A foreign person from a member country may request, via the home PTO, the registration of the mark in the International Register, designating therefore a country that has adhered to the system, whereupon the application will be examined by the local PTO, who may grant or refuse it.
This is particularly so because under the Madrid Protocol it is possible to file a single application, in a single country, with a single set of documents, in a single language, with a single fee payment. And accordingly...
