Merchandise Marks Act, 1941 (Act No. 17 of 1941)14. Unauthorized use of certain emblems |
| (1) | For purposes of this section a person uses a mark or trade mark if he or she uses it- |
| (a) | in connection with his or her trade, business, profession or occupation; or |
| (b) | in connection with a mark, trade mark or trade description applied by him or her to goods made, produced or sold by him or her. |
[Sub-section (1) substituted by section 6 of Act 50 of 2001.]
| (1A) |
| (a) | No person may use a mark or trade mark which consists of or contains the national flag of a convention country, or an imitation from a heraldic point of view, without authorization of the competent authority of the convention country or without being in possession of an authorization in writing signed by or on behalf of the Minister. |
| (b) | Paragraph (a) does not apply if no authorization for the use of a mark or trade mark contemplated in that paragraph is required by the convention country. |
[Sub-section (1A) inserted by section 6 of Act 50 of 2001.]
| (1B) | No person may use a mark or trade mark which consists of or contains the armorial bearings or any other state emblem, of the Republic or a convention country, or an imitation from a heraldic point of view, without authorization of the competent authority of the Republic or convention country, as the case may be. |
[Sub-section (1B) inserted by section 6 of Act 50 of 2001.]
| (1C) | No person may use a mark or trade mark which consists of or contains an official sign or hallmark adopted by the Republic or a convention country, or an imitation from a heraldic point of view, and which indicates control and warranty in relation to goods or services of the same or similar kind as those in relation to which such official sign or hallmark indicates control and warranty, without authorization of the competent authority of the Republic or convention country, as the case may be. |
[Sub-section (1C) inserted by section 6 of Act 50 of 2001.]
| (1D) |
| (a) | No person may use a mark or trade mark which consists of or contains the flag, armorial bearings or any other emblem, or an imitation from a heraldic point of view, or the name, or abbreviation of the name, of any international organization of which any convention country is a member, without authorization by such organization. |
| (b) | Paragraph (a) does not apply if the use of the mark or trade mark contemplated in that paragraph does not suggest to the public that a connection exists between the organization and the mark or its proprietor, or is not likely to mislead the public as to the existence of a connection between the organization and the mark or its proprietor. |
[Sub-section (1D) inserted by section 6 of Act 50 of 2001.]
| (1E) | Any person who contravenes or fails to comply with any provision of subsection (1A), (1B), (1C) or (1D) shall be guilty of an offence. |
[Sub-section (1E) inserted by section 6 of Act 50 of 2001.]
| (1F) | This section does not apply to a trade mark registered before 1 February 1941. |
[Sub-section (1F) inserted by section 6 of Act 50 of 2001.]
| (1G) | Subsections (1B), (1C) and (1D) apply to a state emblem, official sign or hallmark of a convention country, and the emblem or name, or abbreviation of the name, of an international organization only and to the extent that- |
| (a) | the convention country or international organization has notified the Republic in accordance with Article 6ter of the Paris Convention that it desires to protect that emblem, sign, hallmark, name or abbreviation, as the case may be; |
| (b) | the notification contemplated in paragraph (a) is in force; and |
| (c) | the Republic has not objected to the notification contemplated in paragraph (a) in accordance with Article 6ter of the Paris Convention. |
[Sub-section (1G) inserted by section 6 of Act 50 of 2001.]
| (1H) | Subsection (1B) or (1C) shall not prevent the use of a trade mark by any citizen of a country who is authorized to make use of a state emblem, official sign or hallmark of that country, notwithstanding the fact that it is similar to that of another country. |
[Sub-section (1H) inserted by section 6 of Act 50 of 2001.]
| (2) | Any person who uses in connection with his or her trade, business, profession or occupation any device, emblem, title or words in such a manner as to be likely to lead other persons to believe that- |
| (a) | his or her trade, business, profession or occupation is carried on under the patronage of; or |
| (b) | he or she is employed by or supplies goods to, |
the President, any State department or a provincial government, without authority in writing signed by or on behalf of the President, the Minister administering that department or the Premier of the province concerned, as the case may be, shall be guilty of an offence.
[Section 14 substituted by section 10 of Act 38 of 1997.]