UPDATE

The reform of the Italian Industrial Property Code (CPI) has been definitively approved, designed by the Italian Ministry of Enterprise and Made in Italy (MIMIT) in collaboration with the sector's stakeholders to reinforce the importance of patents, trademarks and designs within the production supply chain, falling within the objectives of the Italian National Recovery and Resilience Plan (PNRR).

The changes made mainly pursue:

• strengthening the competitiveness of the country's system and protecting industrial property;
• simplifying administration and digitizing procedures.

The main changes introduced, which will enter into force following their publication in the Italian Official Gazette, are:

• Technology transfer and patent enhancement processes:
• Abolishment of the so called ‘professor's privilege’: the measure provides that also in Italy ownership of a patent that originates from research carried out by researchers of universities, public research institutes, and scientific hospitalization and treatment institutes will be allocated to the institution.
• the provision's new article 65 contains regulation of the inventions that are generated by research activity financed by companies, with a view to maximum flexibility in the relations between these and university structures.
• Temporary protection for designs and models: the possibility of receiving ad hoc temporary protection for products exhibited at national and international trade fairs has been introduced. This is intended to prevent disclosure causing loss of registration requirements.
• Strengthening of geographical indications: the situations in which it is possible to file opposition against signs that imitate PDOs, an asset of fundamental importance for Italy and the pride of Made in Italy, have been expanded.
• Fight against counterfeiting: article 129 paragraph 3 has been repealed, so as to allow the police to immediately seize any products displayed at trade fairs in the event of suspected counterfeiting, by virtue of a provision of the competent Court which is based on the suspected violation of intellectual property rights. Previously, on the other hand, it was only possible to proceed with the description of the suspect products, without the possibility of immediate seizure.