The Canadian Intellectual Property Office (CIPO) has published a notice that all time limits under the Canadian Patent Act, Trademarks Act and Industrial Design Act beginning on March 16, 2020 and ending on March 31, 2020 are extended until April 1, 2020, due to the disruption caused by the COVID-19 outbreak.1

What you need to know

  • Despite the fact that deadlines have been extended, CIPO remains open for business at this time. We recommend meeting all original deadlines where possible.
  • These extensions only apply to periods of time fixed under the Patent Act, Trademarks Act and Industrial Design Act, and should not be relied upon for other purposes, such as to secure an application priority date.
  • CIPO has indicated that, if the disruption caused by the COVID-19 outbreak continues, time limits fixed under the Patent Act, Trademarks Act and Industrial Design Act may be extended further.
  • CIPO has warned that there will be significant delays in all CIPO services during this period.

Authority to designate any day

The Commissioner of Patents (Commissioner), the Registrar of Trademarks (Registrar) and the Minister have the authority to "designate any day" under the Patent Act,2 Trademarks Act3 and Industrial Design Act4 respectively, in the event of unforeseen circumstances and where it is in the public interest to do so. If a time period fixed under the Patent Act,5 Trademarks Act6 and Industrial Design Act7 ends on a designated day, the time period is extended to the next day that is not a designated day.

The Commissioner, Registrar and Minister have decided to designate all days starting on March 16, 2020 and ending on March 31, 2020, in view of the disruption caused by the COVID-19 outbreak. Practically, this means that all deadlines fixed under the Patent Act, Trademarks Act and Industrial Design Act that fall between March 16, 2020 and March 31, 2020 are extended to April 1, 2020.

Footnotes

1 In the United States, the USPTO has also issued a notice of relief (but which does not grant waivers or extensions of dates or requirements). See https://www.uspto.gov/about-us/news-updates/relief-uspto-customers-affected-covid-19.

2 R.S.C., 1985, c. P-4, s. 78(2).

3 R.S.C., 1985, c. T-13, s. 66(2).

4 R.S.C., 1985, c. I-9, s. 21(2).

5 Supra note 1, s. 78(1).

6 Supra note 2, s. 66(1).

7 Supra note 3, s. 21(1).

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