WhatsApp, ChatGPT and Harvard University trademark registrations (and the importance of translation before the Mexican Institute of Industrial Property).
According to Mexican law, applications filed before the Mexican Institute of Industrial Property with attachments in English must include their translation into Spanish.
If an application before the Mexican IP Agency does not comply with any requirement and the interested party does not respond accordingly, the agency may consider the application abandoned.
Let’s look at some cases.
The WhatsApp trademark was registered in the name of the company WhatsApp Inc. However, the company had a reorganization and changed its name to WhatsApp LLC.
In this regard, the company filed before the Mexican IP Agency its certificate of reorganization from the State of Delaware, along with its translation into Spanish.
The Mexican IP Agency analyzed the documentation and favorably resolved the name change request.
The ChatGPT trademark registration was initially requested by Site Matrix LLC.
At the end of 2023, an assignment application was filed before the Mexican IP Agency, to transfer the trademark to OpenAI OPCO LLC. The assignment documents were filed in English with Spanish translations.
As of today, the procedure is pending resolution by the Mexican IP Agency.
In the case of Harvard University, the trademark registration was requested by the entity “President and Fellows of Harvard College”.
The request was accompanied by several documents in English, including the power of attorney of their Mexican counsels, along with Spanish translations.
The trademark registration was granted by the Mexican IP Agency in 2010 and is still valid today.