Bulgaria

Firm overview

The PM&P team has a long track record of creating winning strategies to protect and manage Intellectual property rights. The respect of Intellectual property rights allows businesses to grow more efficiently, to build their own identity and take leading market positions. Our services cover the full range of Intellectual property works such as trademarks and designs, geographical indications, patents for inventions, utility models, copyright and related rights, protection of know-how, trade secrets, domains. PM&P provides representation before the Patent Office of the Republic of Bulgaria, the European Union Intellectual Property Office (EUIPO), the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO).

Firm overview

Zivko Mijatovic & Partners (ZMP) is a full-service IP law firm, established in 1939 in Belgrade, Yugoslavia, as a general practice law firm. It has grown progressively and today consists of 15 offices in 14 European countries. The overall protection of all IP rights, including prosecution, enforcement and litigation, is provided through the network of ZMP offices covering the Balkan Peninsula and Central and Eastern Europe, with a liaison office in Alicante, Spain, providing legal services in relation to European trademarks and designs and IP legal services in Spain. Over the last 30 years, ZMP’s primary activity has been the protection, via prosecution and litigation, of all IP rights.

The firm has gained reputation for having stellar and efficient services in the region. ZMP is known for being a creative, open and straightforward firm, with a meticulous approach tailored to the client’s needs. ZMP’s constant presence in Central and Eastern Europe means that clients receive immediate and simultaneous service across the region, simply by contacting one of the offices. That is why the service provided by ZMP is unique in the region.

ZMP offers a full range of IP services, providing legal assistance and advice on the protection of IP rights and management and enforcement of the same across Central and Eastern Europe. Services include filing and prosecution of IP rights; searches and watching services; IP portfolio management; dispute resolution; advice and representation in infringement and enforcement matters. ZMP and its attorneys are authorized to represent clients before judicial authorities, IP offices, customs offices and different administrative authorities of the countries in which the firm’s offices are located.

ZMP is particularly active in matters of counterfeiting and piracy. Given that the Western Balkans, due to its geographical location, is a gateway to the EU market and a fertile ground for the production and distribution of counterfeit goods, Rights' holders are advised to consider the measures available across the region and contemplate implementing a strategy that recognizes the root of the problem and provides a long-term solution. Countries of the Western Balkans should be considered as a single region. ZMP is uniquely positioned to provide this service through its network of tightly linked local offices. The firm has therefore introduced a “Customs Package” whereby it handles customs applications, seizures and destruction of all counterfeit products flowing through the countries of former Yugoslavia and Albania (eight jurisdictions in total) through only one point of contact, thus saving costs, avoiding heavy administrative burdens and consolidating customs matters with one agent.

As part of the firm´s business growth strategy, ZMP is more active on social media, dynamic, approachable and always on alert on the virtual space to detect any kind of unfair competition in the market through typo squatting, metatags, spamming and cybersquatting because we focus on our clients and consumer protection. ZMP strives towards corporate responsibility, through sponsorship activities and the number of professionals employed in our offices has increased by a minimum of 10% annually, with constant investment in education.

Network Memberships:
INTA, ECTA, AIPPI, MARQUES, PTMG

Firm overview

Djingov, Gouginski, Kyutchukov & Velichkov (DGKV) is one of the largest and most experienced business law firms in Bulgaria, highly ranked by both clients and partners. Founded in 1994 by the four name partners, the firm currently employs 60 lawyers, including 17 partners, and maintains offices in Sofia and Berlin. The firm provides a full range of business-related legal services to international and domestic corporate clients. As one of the leaders on the Bulgarian legal market, DGKV has a well-established IP practice.

We represent and provide consultation and advice on all aspects of intellectual property including registration, preservation, and enforcement of patents, trademarks, designs, geographical indications, copyright, plant variety rights and trade secrets, execution of licensing, transfer of technology and know-how contracts. Our law firm conducts intellectual property and information technology due diligence and audit, provides trademark, design and patent maintenance services, advises on portfolio structuring, conducts pre-registration searches, and represents clients in complex cases involving infringement of intellectual property rights.

The Practice Group is staffed with certified patent and trademark attorneys and fully qualified lawyers, in representing clients before the courts of all instances, the customs authorities, the Bulgarian Patent Office and other competent local authorities, the Competition Protection Commission, WIPO and EUIPO.

We have excellent understanding of the Trademark and IP issues faced by industries from food and beverages production and distribution to automotive, energy, pharma, telecommunications, tobacco, entertainment, software development, cosmetics, chemicals, technology, accommodation, retail.

Currently, DGKV’s IP team manages more than 6 100 national, international and EU trademarks for clients from various industries.

DGKV’s lawyers are recognized leaders in the field of IP law, providing unparalleled guidance to both start-ups. The lawyers of the team have excellent understanding of the Trademark and IP issues faced by industries from food and beverages production and distribution to automotive, energy, pharma, telecommunications, tobacco, entertainment, software development, cosmetics, chemicals, technology, and accommodation.

DGKV’s IP practice has grown significantly over the past several years. We have attracted a myriad of new international and domestic clients and have had great feedback from both clients and partners. Our work is valued for our expertise, extensive knowledge, efficiency, and honesty.

The head of the practice Ms. Kalina Tchakarova, who is the Partner, heading the IP and Pharma Regulatory practice groups at DGKV.

The team consists of 6 fully qualified attorneys.

Firm overview

Established in 1993, patent bureau “K TAHTADJIEV” is one of the leading Industrial Property (IP) offices in Bulgaria, practicing Industrial property for over 35 years. Possessing qualifications such as EQE qualified European patent attorney and European Trademark Attorney, our expertise and practice spreads around Europe and globally as well. We have gained considerable experience over time teaming up and networking with globally acclaimed IP law firms and foreign multinational companies from the industry.

The bureau’s emphasis is on preparation, filing and prosecution of Bulgarian patent applications, European patent applications, European Patent Validations, European Patent Validation in Bulgaria, PCT applications, PCT national phase in Bulgaria, EURO-PCT regional phases, utility model registrations, trademark registrations and industrial design registrations, as well as the maintenance and defense of the obtained industrial property rights for Bulgarian and foreign clients.
We are trained to offer patent prosecution advice in all traditional technical fields as well as in those of the most recent technologies from mechanics to electronics and telecommunications, from chemistry and pharmaceutics to biotechnology, from the topography of semiconductors to the patent protection of software.

We aim at attaching great importance to repeatedly analyzing and optimizing strategies in industrial property (IP) rights concerning the relationship between costs and benefits for our clients in particular. Our philosophy is that in the protection of industrial property rights, the technical qualification and concrete argumentation count above all else.

Our identification with the requirements of our clients reveals itself in detail, showing our technical competence and individual approach. We strongly believe that in the present dramatically increasing innovation trends, the “out-of-the-box” thinking in protecting IP should be high on our agenda.