Due to the numerous requests from the professional community regarding the execution of powers of attorney related to the representation of persons, the Ukrainian National Office of Intellectual Property and Innovation (IP Office/Ukrainian National Intellectual Property and Innovation Agency) has prepared a number of recommendations related to industrial property objects.
A power of attorney is a written document issued by one person to another for representation before third parties. A power of attorney for a representative to perform a transaction may be granted by the represented person (principal) directly to a third party. It is stipulated that the representative is obliged to execute the transaction under the powers granted to him personally. He or she may transfer (delegate) his or her authority in part or in full to another person. A power of attorney issued by way of delegation is subject to notarization.
The term of the power of attorney shall be specified in the power of attorney. If the term of the power of attorney is not specified, it shall remain in force until its termination. The term of a power of attorney issued by way of a sub-power of attorney may not exceed the term of the main power of attorney on the basis of which it is issued. A power of attorney that does not specify the date of its execution is void.
Form of the power of attorney
A power of attorney submitted to UNOIPI shall be drawn up in any written form and, taking into account the requirements established by the Civil Code of Ukraine, shall contain
- name (full name) of the person represented (principal);
- name (full name) of the person to whom the power of attorney is issued (attorney, representative);
- the name of the body to which the person to whom the power of attorney is issued is appointed for representation;
- clearly defined legal actions to be performed by the representative; date of their performance.
Regarding the person to whom the power of attorney is issued
A person may appoint a representative for certain legal actions and simultaneously or later appoint another representative for other legal actions. The current legislation also does not impose any restrictions on the right of a person to appoint several attorneys-in-fact to perform the same legal actions for the same third party. A power of attorney issued to a new representative with the same powers does not terminate the previous power of attorney unless it is canceled by the person who issued it.
Thus, a person has the right to entrust another representative to perform a separate legal action or several actions with respect to an application relating to industrial property rights without canceling the power of attorney previously issued to the representative whose information is included in the bibliographic data of the application and without making changes to the representative’s name and address. If the applicant appoints a representative to perform a particular action under the application, correspondence concerning such action shall be conducted at the address in Ukraine specified by this representative. In this case, copies of the relevant documents shall be sent by UNOIPI to the correspondence address specified in the application, and if the correspondence is conducted electronically, to the applicant’s personal account in the UNOIPI ICS.
Indication of a third party
Any of the following wording is considered to be an acceptable indication of a third party in the power of attorney
- the state organization “Ukrainian National Office of Intellectual Property and Innovations” (UNOIPI);
- National Intellectual Property Authority (NIPA);
- a state organization determined by the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine as such that exercises delegated powers and other functions of the NIPA provided for by the laws in the field of intellectual property;
- institutions, enterprises, organizations exercising powers in the field of intellectual property.
Indication of legal actions to be performed by the representative
The power of attorney may not list separately all legal actions that the representative is authorized to take, but the content of the power of attorney should make it clear which powers of the representative are covered by the power of attorney, for example, it may state: “In order to execute this Power of Attorney, the Attorney shall be entitled to perform all legal actions on behalf of the Principal provided for by the legislation of Ukraine in the field of intellectual property.”
The power of attorney must specifically state the representative’s right, if the principal authorizes the attorney to perform the following actions: to take actions to withdraw applications, early termination of intellectual property rights (waiver of titles of protection and rights); to take actions to transfer the right under the application or dispose of intellectual property rights; to transfer (reassign) the representative’s powers in part or in full to another person; to certify copies of documents. If the power of attorney does not contain these powers, it is considered that they have not been granted to the attorney.
Signing a power of attorney
A power of attorney is signed by the person who issued it. The signature of an individual consists of a personal signature, initials and surname. A power of attorney on behalf of a legal entity shall be signed by the director or other person authorized by law or a constituent document and certified by the seal (if any) of the legal entity. If a representative submits an application in electronic form, he or she may attach a power of attorney in electronic form signed by the principal using an electronic signature based on a qualified public key certificate.
Submission of the power of attorney
The power of attorney shall be submitted to the UNOIPI in the original. A power of attorney in electronic form signed by the principal using an electronic signature based on a qualified public key certificate is an original electronic document. A power of attorney may relate to one or more applications or titles of protection. If the power of attorney relates to more than one application, it shall be attached to the first application filed on the basis of such power of attorney. If the original of the power of attorney certifying the representative’s authority to file an 
application is kept at UNOIPI and is contained in the materials of another application or certificate (patent), a copy of the power of attorney with a reference to the original shall be attached to this application. A copy of the power of attorney shall be valid only if it is certified in accordance with the procedure established by law. A copy of the power of attorney may be certified by a notary or a lawyer in the case he or she is handling.
A copy of the power of attorney may be certified by a representative if the right to certify copies of documents is specified in the power of attorney. In this case, the authenticity of the copy of the power of attorney from the original power of attorney shall be ensured by a representative who has the appropriate authority to certify copies of documents, and an electronic scanned copy of the power of attorney made from the original on paper may also be submitted. Such an electronic copy must be certified by the representative using an electronic signature based on a qualified public key certificate.
If the power of attorney is issued for representation before several bodies, and not only before the NIPA, and therefore the representative cannot provide the original power of attorney, a notarized copy of such power of attorney may be submitted to the UNOIPI. If the right to certify copies of documents by the representative is stated in the power of attorney, a notarized copy of the power of attorney certified by the representative may be submitted to the UNOIPI.
Actions taken by a representative in excess of his/her powers
If the filing date of the application precedes the date of execution of the power of attorney, the representative must submit together with the power of attorney an application or other document of the applicant approving the filing of the application by the representative in accordance with Article 241 of the Civil Code of Ukraine. Approval of the submission of the application or all actions taken prior to the date of the proxy may be stated in the proxy.
Revocation of the power of attorney
The person who issued the power of attorney has the right to cancel or reassign the power of attorney at any time. A person who has issued a power of attorney and subsequently revoked it must immediately notify the representative, as well as third parties known to him or her, for whose representation the power of attorney was issued. Thus, the person who issued the power of attorney and subsequently revoked it must immediately notify the 
UNOIPI. The date of such notification shall be the date of receipt of the relevant written notice by the UNOIPI. Such notification may be contained in the power of attorney issued to the new representative. A notification from a new representative, which does not contain a request for cancellation of the previously issued power of attorney certified by the applicant, shall not be a ground for termination of the powers of the representative authorized to represent the applicant’s interests earlier. Upon termination of the power of attorney, the power of attorney becomes invalid.
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copyright / intellectual property / power of attorney / rules / UNOIPI
