UnItED ARAB EMIRAtEs
David Moore
Clyde & Co
PRotECtIon In
tHE EMIRAtEs
Introduction
free zones, this is not always the case. For example, the Dubai International
Financial Centre (DIFC) was established following an amendment to the
Th e United Arab Emirates (UAE) has come under scrutiny recently in the
wake of a global slump in the property market. Th e image of the country,
UAE constitution to allow it to self-legislate and exist as a common law
and the emirate of Dubai in particular, are at risk. To the outside world,
jurisdiction (albeit physically located within the emirate of Dubai). It is
it may seem as if the market is largely unregulated and that there are few
currently unclear whether or not the UAE’s federal intellectual property
safeguards for property investors or lenders. Th ere is also a perception that
laws are enforceable in the DIFC. To remedy this, the DIFC has released a
there are few safeguards for intellectual property (IP) owners.
suite of its own draft intellectual property laws. We have provided extensive
comments on the laws and await their introduction in the near future.
In reality, laws are in place in the UAE to protect investors and lenders in real
estate property. For example, Barclays Bank has recently won the country’s
trademark law and practice
fi rst foreclosure case contested through the courts under a mortgage law
introduced in 2008.
Th e Trademark Law is fundamentally similar to that of most other countries.
In summary:
Owners of intellectual property also receive protection, and where there are
defi ciencies in the laws, the government is working to implement amendments. • Applications to register new marks receive a substantive examination on
absolute and relative grounds (with the examination backlog recently
Legal framework and free zones
having been cut from 18 months to around six months)
Th e Trademark Law, Patent Law and Copyright Law are federal laws having • Accepted applications must be published for opposition
eff ect across all seven emirates of the UAE.
• Th e law provides for registered marks to be cancelled, including on the
Th ere are free zones in some Emirates, which facilitate the setting up of
grounds of non-use (with the non-use period being fi ve years)
specifi ed types of businesses. Although federal laws generally apply in the • Th ere is protection for well-known marks, and
154 World Intellectual Property Review Digest 2009 www.worldipreview.com
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