Moldova and Ukraine participate at EUIPO Liaison Meetings

The European Union Intellectual Property Office (EUIPO) convened intellectual property (IP) stakeholders across Europe for the 24th Liaison Meeting on Cooperation on 31 March 2025, and also hosted the 33rd Liaison Meeting on Trade Marks on 1 April and the 25th Liaison Meeting on Designs on 2 April 2025, demonstrating the EUIPO's commitment to regional cooperation.

These meetings, organised by the EUIPO, provide a platform to present the latest developments, initiatives and best practices in trade mark and design protection, legal convergence and IP cooperation. Participants include the EUIPO, the EUIPN and candidate countries, as well as users’ representatives.

The Republic of Moldova and Ukraine regularly participate in these discussions, led by the EUIPO, reinforcing their commitment to advancing the alignment of their IP legal frameworks and implementation practices, and highlighting the EUIPO's role in supporting EU candidate countries, implementing initiatives like the EU4IP project, to enhance IP protection frameworks and strengthen institutional capacities.

As part of the meetings, discussions focused on convergence of trade mark and design practices, with the EUIPO, together with the EU national and regional IP offices (EUIPN), promoting the convergence of trade mark and design practices internationally, as set out in Article 151.2 of the EU trade mark Regulation, and facilitating a more efficient application and registration process both within the EU and internationally.

The meetings also highlighted the EUIPO’s digital transformation initiatives, showcasing tools and databases, such as TMview, developed to enhance IP registration processes and provide greater accessibility for businesses, creators and innovators across jurisdictions, demonstrating the EUIPO's expertise in IP valuation and its strategic vision to embrace the challenge of offering free-of-charge quality data.

Through its leadership in the EUIPN, the EUIPO plays a pivotal role in mobilising expertise and fostering international collaboration in the IP ecosystem. By facilitating these liaison meetings, the EUIPO ensures that national and regional IP offices, as well as EU candidate countries, remain engaged with the latest IP developments and work towards a more harmonised and efficient global IP framework, ultimately benefiting users and the business community.