Bill No. 512/2025, currently pending before the Chamber of Deputies, proposes targeted yet significant amendments to Law No. 9,279/1996 (the Industrial Property Law), with an emphasis on trademark protection. The bill seeks, on the one hand, to recognize the right to use a mark in cases of prolonged use without opposition and, on the other, to potentially incorporate suggestions from the Brazilian Intellectual Property Association (ABPI) aimed at curbing trademark registrations without effective use. Taken together, these changes directly affect legal certainty for business owners – especially micro and small entrepreneurs – and the competitive function of the Brazilian trademark system
n the context of Article 129 of the Industrial Property Law, Bill No. 512/2025 seeks to add paragraph 3 with the following wording (already adjusted by the Committee on Industry, Trade, and Services): the right to use a mark will be recognized after its prolonged use without opposition and with inaction on the part of the owner referred to in the caput of the article, provided there is a significant geographical distance between the establishments involved and proven absence of harm to the owner of the registration. In practical terms, the bill aims to protect situations in which an entrepreneur, acting in good faith, has used a mark for many years in a given territory, without any reaction from the registered owner and without evidence of confusion or damage, preventing the mere existence of the registration, in the absence of any prior opposition, from later being invoked to restrict legitimately consolidated business activities.
The bill’s statement of reasons highlights the situation of local and regional businesses that build reputation, clientele, and visual identity without, in some cases, having fully structured their trademark registration strategy. Cases are not uncommon in which such businesses are caught off guard by owners of registrations obtained later, often large companies that do not operate in the same region or market segment and that nevertheless seek to prevent the use of the mark. The bill is inspired, among other sources, by a precedent of the First Reserved Panel for Business Law of the São Paulo Court of Justice, which accepted the coexistence of marks in light of prolonged use, good faith, the inaction of the registered owner, the geographical distance between the establishments, and the absence of concrete harm.
Moreover, the opinion issued by the Committee on Industry, Trade, and Services adopted a technical contribution from ABPI to refine Article 133 of the Industrial Property Law by adding a new paragraph 4. Under the proposed wording, an application for renewal of a trademark registration must include a declaration by the owner, under penalty of law, that the mark is in effective use in Brazil, with a detailed description of the products or services actually identified by the mark in the protected classes. Renewal will be granted exclusively for those products or services for which there is a declaration of effective use, understood as lawful sales in Brazilian territory or lawful sales from abroad to residents or persons domiciled in the country. The measure directly targets the phenomenon known as “deadwood”: registrations that remain in force without real use, clogging the system and hindering the entry of new economic actors.
From a corporate and legal perspective, the proposed amendments seek to harmonize principles such as good faith, the social function of trademarks, and the promotion of fair competition. Recognizing a right of use based on prolonged, good-faith, and unopposed exploitation brings the trademark regime closer to a more substantive approach, in which actual use in the marketplace plays a relevant role in defining rights. At the same time, the requirement of a declaration of effective use for renewal reinforces the notion that a trademark is not merely a speculative asset, but a distinctive sign tied to concrete economic activities, aligning Brazil with practices adopted in other jurisdictions.
From a social and economic standpoint, Bill No. 512/2025 is likely to benefit primarily small and medium-sized entrepreneurs, who are often in an asymmetric position vis-à-vis large corporations with greater capacity for litigation and trademark portfolio management. By treating geographical distance, absence of harm, and prolonged use as relevant elements, the bill seeks to curb predatory uses of the registration system and strengthen legal certainty for those who actually use the mark in the marketplace. At the same time, it preserves the central role of registration, which remains the preferred means of acquiring rights, but is now complemented by more refined criteria for assessing the exercise of those rights.
It is important to emphasize, however, that Bill No. 512/2025 is still pending and has not yet been submitted to the Plenary of the Chamber of Deputies. At this stage, it remains a bill under discussion and legislative refinement, subject to amendments, adjustments, and even rejection. Until it is definitively approved by the National Congress and signed into law by the President, the current rules of Law No. 9,279/1996 remain fully in force and continue to guide trademark protection strategies in Brazil.
In a shifting legislative landscape, closely monitoring the progress of Bill No. 512/2025 and ABPI’s technical proposals is essential for companies, managers, and professionals involved in intellectual property. The issue directly affects those who use trademarks in local or regional markets, as well as those who manage complex trademark registration portfolios.
By: Vanessa Pereira Oliveira Soares
Intellectual Property | CPDMA Team