COLOMBIA
NEW PATENT PROSECUTION HIGHWAYS IN COLOMBIA
The Colombian government is planning to sign three new agreements implementing Patent Prosecution Highways with the European Patent Office, Prosur and the Pacific Alliance.
The Colombian Trademark and Patent Office, aware of the importance that patents have for the development of our country, has decided to boost its procedure so that the final decision regarding the granting or denial of a patent is issued in no longer than 23 months. For this purpose, the signing of agreements with other world patent authorities became necessary in order to implement “Patent Prosecution Highways (PPH)” which allow endorsing substantive examinations and decisions granting patents already issued in other countries, implementing such agreements which are homologous to requests pending patents in Colombia.
The Colombian Trademark and Patent Office has signed agreements with the United States of America Patent Office, the Spanish Trademark and Patent Office, the Japan Patent Office and the South Korean Patent Office. The Colombian Trademark and Patent Office is planning to sign other agreements to implement the accelerated patent procedure with the European Patent Office, with the Alliance of the Pacific (Peru, Chile and Mexico) and Prosur (Ecuador, Peru, Argentina, Chile, Uruguay, Paraguay, Brazil and Colombia).
The ultimate goal is to make part of the Global Patent Prosecution Highway, which would make Colombia a pioneer in regards to the patent procedures in Latin America.