Judicial Administration Structure for IP Disputes: Chile
Information provided by:
Office of the Under-Secretary for International Economic Relations
| Supreme Court | ||||||||||||
| Industrial Property Court (appeals) |
Court of appeals (appeals/invalidation) |
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| Agriculture and Livestock Service (administrative proceedings and disputes) |
National Industrial Property Institute (administrative proceedings and disputes) |
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| Civil courts (first instance) |
Criminal courts (first instance) |
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| Administrative jurisdiction Matters relating to administrative proceedings and disputes concerning the registration of plant breeders' rights |
Administrative jurisdiction Matters relating to administrative proceedings and disputes concerning the registration of industrial property rights |
Civil jurisdiction Infringement of IP rights, service inventions, patent infringements. Unfair competition |
Criminal jurisdiction Criminal offenses relating to IP |
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In Chile, the National Industrial Property Institute is the public agency in charge of administering and registering industrial property rights, including trademarks, patents, industrial designs, utility models, geographical indications and appellations of origin.
For the registration of plant breeders' rights for new plant varieties, the competent authority is the Agriculture and Livestock Service.
Appeals may be filed before the Industrial Property Court against resolutions and judgments issued by the Institute in respect of applications to which oppositions have been filed and of those to which they have not. Appeals may also be filed before that Court against final decisions by the Agriculture and Livestock Service granting or rejecting the registration of new plant varieties. The Court is a special and independent judicial body that hears cases involving intellectual property (IP).
Appeals in cassation on the merits may be filed before the Supreme Court, the country's highest judicial body, in cases where the Industrial Property Court has handed down a judgment in violation of the law and where that has had a substantial impact on the wording of that judgment.
Civil courts
The civil courts of first instance are ordinary courts that may hear civil lawsuits relating to infringements of IP rights, including copyright, related rights, trademarks, patents, industrial designs and utility models.
Civil courts may rule on the ownership of service inventions, that is, inventions created by employees, and on patent infringements.
They may also hear cases involving unfair competition.
Criminal courts
The criminal courts of first instance may hear cases involving infringements of industrial and intellectual property, including copyright and related rights.
Courts of appeals
The courts of appeals are collegial courts of second instance, the role of which is to hear appeals filed against decisions of the civil and criminal courts.
Supreme Court
The Supreme Court is the highest judicial body, the function of which is to exercise the administrative, disciplinary and economic powers assigned to it by law. With regard to IP, it hears appeals in cassation against rulings of the Industrial Property Court and the courts of appeals.
Industrial Property Court
The Industrial Property Court is a specialized body that hears administrative and adversarial disputes relating to industrial property rights. Its judges are specialists in the subject matter.
The Industrial Property Court is not competent to hear disputes involving copyright or related rights. Cases involving the infringement of such rights are heard by the ordinary courts.
Chilean Judiciary: https://www.pjud.cl/portal-jurisprudencia
Industrial Property Court: https://www.tdpi.cl/jurisprudencia/