Covid-19 procedural deadlines for intellectual property law in Spain

Court

Courts activity and deadlines are resumed from 4th June. 

The Government has adopted several measures to ensure that the return to procedural activity does not collapse the judicial system: 

  1. Courts will be active from 11st to 31st of August 2020 (except Saturdays, Sundays and public holidays). This period has therefore been declared as working days for all short of legal proceedings. 
  2. Deadlines which were interrupted because of the declaration of the state of alarm, would start from the beginning, regardless of the days that had elapsed since the beginning of the deadline, until the declaration of the state of alarm. Thus, this new period would begin to count entirely on 5th June. 
  3. Deadlines with regards to appeals against judgements and other short of decisions terminating proceedings, notified (i) during the state de alarm or (ii) until 2nd July (twenty working days counting as from 4th June) would be then extended for another term. (i.e. If the appeal was served at any point during the state of alarm or until 2nd July (included), parties will be given an extra full term for filing their appeals, start counting on 5th June. However, if the appeal is notified after 2nd July, the term will remain the same as it was before the declaration of the state of alarm).

IPO (IP Office)

SPTO deadlines are resumed from 1st June 00:00h (i.e. If there were three days left to the deadline once the declaration of the state of alarm, the deadline would last now on 4th June 00:00h). However, some specifications have to be made:  

  1. Deadlines counting on months with some days elapsed before 14th March: Remaining calendar days of said month will be counted as working days, as it is the most favourable criteria for the affected party. Remaining months of the period will be counted from date to date.  
  2. For those procedures served from 14th March to 30th May (both included), deadlines would begin to count entirely from 1st June. 
  3. Those appeals (a) still within the time-limit once the declaration of the state of alarm and (b) against SPTO decisions served from 14th March to 30th May, will be resumed from 1st June. The deadline shall end, in both cases, on 1st July.

Comments

With regards to the rights and actions limitation/expiration periods, deadlines are resumed as from 4th June.

The Government has adopted several measures to ease the return to Court activity which will last three months after the end of the state of alarm (e.g. court hearing via telematic means, work shifts of public officers, etc.).