UPDATE CONCERNING COVID -19 AND COMMUNITY QUARANTINE IN METRO MANILA PHILIPPINES

March 16, 2020

UPDATE CONCERNING COVID -19 AND COMMUNITY QUARANTINE IN METRO MANILA PHILIPPINES

A community quarantine to counter the spread of the coronavirus disease 2019 came into effect over Metro Manila on 15 March 2020 at 12 a.m.  With the quarantine in place, travel to and from Metro Manila would be restricted.

Businesses in Metro Manila still continue provided that protective measures are put into place to limit the spread of the virus. Our office will continue business as usual and we have placed guidelines and measures for the health and safety of  our staff and personnel.  

In view of the approval by President Rodrigo R. Duterte of the recommendation by the Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Disease to raise the Code Alert System for the COVID-19 public health event to Code Red Sublevel 2, the Philippine Intellectual Property Office shall be implementing the following:

  1. Work is suspended from 16 March 2020 until 14 April 2020 but a skeletal workforce shall be maintained to ensure continued delivery of services.
  2. All scheduled hearings before the IPOPHL, including mediation, are suspended.
  3. Responses to official actions, declarations, and other documents including motions for extension of the period to file oppositions to trademark applications, answers, position papers, and appeals, falling due from 16 March 2020 to 14 April 2020, may be filed on 15 April 2020 and shall be considered filed on their due dates.
  4. New applications for patents, utility models, industrial designs, trademarks, and trademark related documents for the period of 16 March 2020 to 15 April 2020 may be filed online through the IPOPHL electronic filing system. No manual filing shall be accepted.
  5. Payments due for the period of 16 March 2020 to 15 April 2020, including but not limited to annuity payments and maintenance fees, may be paid on 16 April 2020.
  6. The operations of the documentary receiving section of IPOPHL are suspended. Letters, queries, or any other written communications may be filed on 16 April 2020.
  7. IPOPHL shall be unable to process requests for certified true copies for the period of 16 March 2020 to 15 April 2020.
  8. To observe social distancing, all seminars, meetings, and public hearings scheduled from 16 March 2020 to 15 April 2020 shall be reset to a later date.
  9. Access to IPOPHL mailboxes shall be allowed during the period of community quarantine.
  10. Field Operations Personnel outside the National Capital Region shall continue to perform their functions provided that the areas in which they operate are not restricted and are declared safe or COVID-19 free.
  11. Travel outside the area of assignment is suspended during the period of 15 March 2020 to 14 April 2020.

During the work suspension of the Philippine Intellectual Property Office on 16 March 2020 to 14 April 2020, our firm will continue to provide services to our clients with the filing of new applications and post filing requirements to be done through the IPO’s Electronic Filling System. For those matters that cannot be accommodated by the IPO’s Electronic Filing System, we will make them ready for manual filing on 15 April 2020.

We will also continue to work on all types of written submissions in new and pending cases and annuities and maintenance documents to make them ready for filing on 15 April 2020.

For updates, questions and concerns, you may email us through mail@poncelaw.com.ph or leave your inquiries through our contact form.