During the start-up phase of BIP SXM, BOIP gathered all the relevant available data concerning trademark rights valid in Sint Maarten. An online register was created based on the official publications by the Bureau for Intellectual Property Curaçao (BIP CW) between January 2001 and October 2015.
Please note the following assumptions that were made and decisions that were taken.
Numbering
Lists of goods and services
New data added to the register
The online register for Sint Maarten has been available since April 2015. As of October 2015 up to March 2016 the Bureau for Intellectual Property Sint Maarten (BIP SXM) has received new publications of the register as previously published by BIP CW. The latest update of the register available to BIP SXM contains all the data previously published by BIP CW for Sint Maarten.
Lapsed rights
BIP CW publishes the fact that trademarks are lapsed or renewed. All trademarks that were published as lapsed were not included in the online register. All trademarks published as renewed were included. If an owner of a trademark or a representative notice that a trademark was mistakenly not included in the register, they are invited to contact BIP SXM (via e-mail at: trademarks@bip.sx). Please mention as subject: “request for correction of data”) to resolve this matter.
Changes and renewals
BOIP has also processed all changes and renewals recorded for Sint Maarten and published by BIP CW in the publications of December 2014 through October 2016. BOIP has adjusted the Sint Maarten register and incorporated these changes and renewals. However, these are published as corrections of the initially recorded data since these renewals and changes were recorded by BIP CW before the entering into force of the Sint Maarten Trademark Ordinance.
Transition
When the Sint Maarten Trademark Ordinance entered into force, some files were still being treated by BIP CW. They had already been introduced at BIP CW before October 1, 2015 but had not yet been completed at that time. These files were completed through a joint effort of both organizations. BIP SXM/ BOIP have asked the representatives to complete the missing data and/or fulfil the missing actions and BIP CW has subsequently finalized the files. After that, BIP CW has informed BIP SXM of the latest changes to the register and handed over the completed files.
Since these requests were introduced before October 1, 2015, BIP SXM cannot publish them as changes or renewals. The recordal dates of these acts lie at a point in time before BIP SXM existed. They have therefore been recorded into the Sint Maarten register as corrections of the register.
Earlier rights
In 2001, when the Netherlands Antilles ‘Merkenlandsverordening 1995’ entered into force, trademark owners needed to reconfirm their rights during the first year. Owners could, with these reconfirming applications, indicate the existence of earlier rights with validity in the Netherlands Antilles under the old legislation.
At the time of registration of the reconfirming applications these earlier rights claimed, were not published. However, in the more recent years these dates of protection before 2001 were published with renewals either as “date of registration” or (later) “date of depot” under code 15 of the renewal.
BOIP has added these dates published under code 15. They will be mentioned with trademarks applied for in 2001 after the sentence: “Protected under the legislation applicable in the Netherlands Antilles before 2001 since: [dd month yyyy]”. Please note that BOIP only mentions the oldest date. If for example an earlier date of registration with an even earlier priority date was recorded, only the priority date is mentioned.
Please note that BOIP did not manage to retrieve all the dates of protection before 2001. If an owner of a trademark or a representative observes that an earlier right was overlooked, they are invited to contact BIP SXM (via e-mail at: trademarks@bip.sx). Please mention as subject: “request for correction of data”) to resolve this matter. BOIP will ask for further information at the time of renewal of trademarks applied for in 2001, especially in those cases were the lapse of the trademark doesn’t occur after a ten-year interval.
Incorrect Data
Given the method used to build up the Sint Maarten trademark register BIP SXM cannot guarantee that the initially recorded data is fully correct and that no trademarks were overlooked. Trademark owners or their representative who notice a mistake in the recorded data or a missing trademark are invited to contact BIP SXM (via e-mail at: trademarks@bip.sx). Please mention as subject: “request for correction of data”) to resolve this matter. We apologize for any incorrect data and look forward to receiving your feedback.