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Functions of Trade Marks Office, Controller, registrars and other officers
(1) The Trade Marks Office established by subsection (1) of section 3 of the Trade
Marks Act [Chapter 26:04] shall be responsible for registering geographical
indications and for exercising all the other functions of the Trade Marks Office in
terms of this Act.
(2) The Controller shall exercise general supervision and direction of the Trade
Marks Office in the exercise of its functions under this Act.
(3) Every registrar of trade marks referred to in paragraph (a) of subsection (3) of
section 3 of the Trade Marks Act [Chapter 26:04] shall have power, subject to the
Controller’s general supervision and direction, to exercise the functions of the
Registrar under this Act.
(4) If the Controller so directs, an officer referred to in paragraph (b) of subsection
(3) of section 3 of the Trade Marks Act [Chapter 26:04] shall have power, subject to
the Controller’s general supervision and direction, to exercise any function of the
Registrar under this Act.
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Seal
The seal of the Patent Office kept in terms of the Patents Act [Chapter 26:03] shall
also be the seal of the Trade Marks Office for the purposes of this Act, and
impressions thereof made for the purposes of this Act shall be judicially noticed.
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Register of Geographical Indications
There shall be kept at the Trade Marks Office for the purposes of this Act a Register
of Geographical Indications, in which shall be entered—
(a)
particulars of every registered geographical indication, including—
(i)
the name and address of the person on whose application the
indication was registered; and
(ii)
the effective date of registration of the indication; and
the area which the indication identifies as the area of origin of the
(iii)
product to which it relates; and
(iv)
each product to which the indication relates, and the quality,
reputation or characteristic of the product that is attributable to its origin;
and
(b)
everything which is required by or under this Act to be entered in the
Register; and
anything else relating to registered geographical indications that the
(c)
Registrar thinks necessary or desirable to enter in the Register.
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Inspection of Register and right to obtain copies of entries therein
The Register shall be open to inspection by the public at all convenient times, and a
certified copy, sealed with the seal of the Patent Office, of any entry in the Register
shall be given on payment of the prescribed fee to any person who requires it.
PART III
USE OF MISLEADING GEOGRAPHICAL INDICATIONS
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Prohibition against use of misleading geographical indications
(1) Subject to this Act, no person shall apply a misleading geographical indication to
any product.
(2) Subject to this Act, no person shall—
(a)
sell any product; or
(b)
import any product for sale in Zimbabwe; or
(c)
export any product for sale outside Zimbabwe; or
(d)
manufacture any product for sale;
if a misleading geographical indication is applied to the product.
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Institution of proceedings regarding use of misleading geographical indication
(1) In this section—
“interested person”, in relation to the application or alleged application of a
misleading geographical indication to any product, includes—
(a)
any person who sells, manufactures, imports or exports for sale—