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SAO TOME AND PRINCIPE

not lead the consumer's into confusion or mistake;
Considering that the National Service of Intellectual Property is not only
incumbent to process the applications for protection of inventions, but
also to supply information of existent techniques based upon the
documents of patents published;

CHAPTER I
G ENERAL P ROVISIONS

Article 1
Concept and Scope
1.

Intellectual Property has a social function of guaranteeing the fair
competition trough the attribution of rights under the scope of this
Law, and trough the repression of unfair competition.

2.

Intellectual Property encompasses industry and commerce, fishing,
agricultural, forestry, livestock farming, and extractive industries, as
well as all the natural or manufactured products and services.

3.

This Law applies to individual and legal persons, Santomeneans or
nationals of the countries member of the International Union for the
Protection of Industrial Property, hereinafter Union, under the
Convention of Paris, of 20 March 1883 and its amendments,
regardless of domicile or establishment, without prejudice of special
provisions regarding competence and procedure.

4.

Nationals of countries outside the Union who are domiciled or who
have real and effective industrial or commercial establishments in the
territory of one of the countries of the Union shall be treated in the
same manner as nationals of the countries of the Union.

5.

To any others foreigners it shall be applicable the conventions
between Sao Tome and Principe and the respective countries and, in
the absence of those, the regimen of reciprocity.

CHAPTER II
P ATENTS

Article 2
Definitions
1.

For the purposes of this Law ‘Patent’ shall mean a title granted for
protect an invention.

3

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