Intellectual property services

BIZLAW professionally undertakes the registration of Trademarks, Copyright, Patents & Logo in UAE and worldwide.
1. Expert counselling and advising
2. Preparation and execution of applications for registration
3. Protection against infringement and passing off
4. Protection against counterfeiting, piracy and unfair trade practices
5. IP due diligence in acquisition of IPR, mergers and acquisitions
6. Litigations
7. Alternative Dispute Resolution

Intellectual Property

Intellectual property (IP) refers to creations of the mind, such as inventions; literary and artistic works ; designs; and symbols, names and images used in commerce. IP is protected in law by, for example, patents, copyright and trademarks, which enable people to earn recognition or financial benefit from what they invent or create. By striking the right balance between the interests of innovators and the wider public interest , the IP system aims to foster an environment in which creativity and innovation can flourish.

Trademark Registration UAE

The United Arab Emirates is a member to the Paris Convention for the Protection of Industrial Property. The international classification of goods is followed in the United Arab Emirates. The Law covers the seven Emirates of Dubai, Abu-Dhabi, Sharjah, Ras Al-Khaimah, Ajman, Fujairah and Umm Al-Quwain.. A separate application should be filed with respect to each class of goods or services. A certified translation of the trademark is to be submitted as well. Once a trademark application is filed, it is examined as to its registrability. Trademark applications accepted by the Registrar are published in the Trade Mark Journal as well as in two local daily Arabic newspapers and the cuttings of the notices are to be submitted to the Trademark Office. Any interested party may file a notice of opposition to the registration of the mark within 30 days from the date of the last publication. The Registrar's decision concerning the opposition may be appealed to the Committee and the Committee's decision to the competent court. In the absence of opposition, a trademark is registered and the relative certificate of registration is issued. A ‪#‎trademarkregistration‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬ is valid for 10 years as from the date of filing the application renewable for similar periods. The renewal fees of a trademark registration can be paid during the final year of the protection period

Business Setup Services

• Identifying ideal business structure for your firm. (establishment ,LLC,proffessional,trade licence,branch,representative,freezone,ofshoe etc.)
• Introducing local sponsor .
• Review & complete licensing documentation.
• Ensure compliance with regulatory requirements.

Mainland Business setup UAE

Limited Liability Company
A Limited Liability Company can be formed by a minimum of two and a maximum of fifty shareholders whose liability is limited to their shares in the company’s capital. Under the Commercial Companies Law or CCL (Federal Law No. 8 of 1984 Concerning Commercial Companies as amended by Federal Law No 1 of 1984 and Federal Law No 13 of 1988, Federal Law No. 15 of 1998), foreign investors are permitted to hold up to 49 % equity ownership in UAE companies, whereas 51 % of the equity must be owned by UAE National(s). Such companies are recognised as offering a suitable structure for foreign individuals or organisations interested in developing a long term relationship with the local business community. The Limited Liability Company or LLC is the most popular method of establishing a commercial company in the UAE, unless the business involves banking, insurance and investment activities conducted on behalf of third parties where a Public Joint Stock Company is required. Articles 218 to 255 of the CCL (inclusive) regulate the establishment of limited liability companies. While Article 227 of the Companies Law (which applies throughout the UAE) stipulates that the minimum share capital of the company is AED 150,000; the minimum share capital required by the Dubai authorities for the Limited Liability Company engaged in business activity other than general trading is currently Dirhams 300,000. For general trading activity, the minimum capital requirement is Dirhams 3,000,000. Individual shares should have a minimum face value of AED 1,000. The shares need to be “equal shares”. An LLC may not conduct the business of insurance, banking or the investment of money on behalf of third parties. Management of the LLC is vested in the ‘managers’ (up to five natural persons) who may or may not be UAE nationals. Although the maximum foreign equity participation in a Limited Liability Company is 49%, profits can be distributed in different proportions as agreed by the promoters/shareholders of the company. With the approval of the UAE National Shareholder(s), the entire business operations of the company may be entrusted to the foreign shareholder(s). The foreign shareholder(s) can, therefore, claim a higher share of profit in case such shareholder(s) provides exclusive management and/or any special services or facilities to the company. As far as the protection of the minority shareholder(s) interest is concerned, this can be done by way of shareholders resolutions and certain related security documents. Although the rules and regulations for establishing the Limited Liability Companies are generally similar in all the seven Emirates of UAE, the requirement of minimum capital and costs involved for registering the company may vary from one Emirate to the other.

Professional Licence

In setting up a professional firm, 100% foreign ownership is generally permitted; however certain sectors and activities are restricted to either UAE nationals or have a UAE national shareholding requirement. Professional firms may be in the form of a sole proprietorship or a civil company. Such firms may engage in professional or artisan activities but the number of persons that may be employed by such firms is limited. A UAE national must be appointed as local partner for sole proprietorship, but s/he has no direct involvement in the business and is paid a lump sum and/or percentage of profits or turnover. The role of the local partner is, among other things, to assist in obtaining licenses, visas and labour cards. Where there are two or more partners, the legal structure is a Civil Works Company whereby there must be a UAE national shareholding of minimum 20%.There is a requirement that all the individuals involved have relevant University level qualifications in the relevant field of business.

Freezone Licence

Free Trade Zones in Dubai and the UAE are isolated lands or setting, with a special tax, customs and imports regime and governed by their own framework of regulations (with the exception of UAE Criminal Law). The UAE has several free zones across Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Sharjah, Fujairah, Ajman, Ras al Khaimah and Um Al Qwain. Free Zones may also be broadly categorized as sea port free zones, air port free zones, and mainland free zones. The Free trade zones in UAE are exempted from:
• 100% foreign ownership of the enterprise
• 100% import and export tax exemptions
• 100% repatriation of capital and profits
• Corporate tax exemptions for up to 50 years
• No personal income taxes
• Assistance with labor recruitment, and additional support services, such as sponsorship and housing.
Each Free Zone is designed around one or more business industry categories and only offers licenses to companies within those categories. An independent Free Zone Authority (FZA) governs each free zone, and is the agency responsible for issuing FTZ operating licenses and assisting companies with establishing their business in the FTZ. Investors can either register a new company in the form of a Free Zone Establishment (FZE) or simply establish a branch or representative office of their existing or parent company based within the UAE or abroad. An FZE is a limited liability company governed by the rules and regulations of the Free Zone in which it is established. Except for acquiring nationality in the UAE, the provisions of the Commercial Companies Law (CCL) do not apply to FZEs, provided that the Free Zones have special provisions regulating such companies.

List of Freezones in UAE

There are more than 37 Free Zones operating in UAE.

Worldwide IP Protection through Berne convention.

Below is a list of signatories of the copyright treaty known as the "Berne Convention for the Protection of Literary and Artistic Works", aka. the "Berne Convention". The Berne Convention was held in 1886 in Berne, Switzerland. The treaty states that if copyright exists in one of these countries, then this copyright is valid in all member countries who are signatories of the Berne Convention. At present there are 177 signatory countries out of 195 countries in the world today. List of Signatories Berne Convention: