Abu-Ghazaleh Intellectual Property

Abu-Ghazaleh Intellectual Property (AGIP) (, abbreviated in Arabic as ; romanized as AGIP) is an intellectual property law and services firm headquartered in Amman, Jordan. Founded in 1972 in Kuwait under the name T.M.P. Agents, AGIP describes itself as the largest intellectual property firm in the Arab world and one of the top ten intellectual property firms worldwide, managing the protection of nearly half of the Fortune Global 500 companies seeking trademark protection in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region.

AGIP provides intellectual property registration, prosecution, enforcement, and consultancy services across a global network covering more than 150 countries and territories. The firm operates through fully established offices in more than 30 jurisdictions, with country offices in 25 countries across the Arab world and in Turkey, Pakistan, China, Iran, Russia, Nigeria, Malaysia, and Indonesia.

AGIP is a member of Talal Abu-Ghazaleh Global (TAG Global), founded by Talal Abu-Ghazaleh. Over more than five decades, AGIP has played an ACTIVE role in the development of intellectual property law and institutional infrastructure across the Arab region, working in close coordination with the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO), the World Trade Organization (WTO), and regional civil society organizations including the Arab Society for Intellectual Property (ASIP) and the Licensing Executives Society – Arab Countries (LES-AC), both of which AGIP helped found and fund.

History

AGIP was established in Kuwait in 1972 under the name T.M.P. Agents, at a time when intellectual property protection was still in its early stages of development in the Arab region.

The firm worked in close coordination with Arab governments and multilateral organizations to introduce an effective intellectual property system to the region. This work gave major multinational corporations the confidence to expand into the Arab region, assured that their intellectual property rights would be protected under a reliable legal framework. Creative individuals such as architects, artists, designers, scientists, musicians, and writers were also encouraged to create more, as their work became properly protected.

AGIP assisted and supported governmental committees and officials responsible for revising existing legislation and drafting new intellectual property laws and regulations in several Arab countries, including Bahrain, Lebanon, Yemen, Oman, Tunisia, Afghanistan, and the United Arab Emirates.

Over the following decades, AGIP expanded its geographic presence across the Arab world and into non-Arab markets, establishing fully operational offices in Turkey, Pakistan, China, Iran, Russia, Nigeria, Malaysia, and Indonesia, while developing a global network of over 150 liaison and correspondent offices worldwide.

Services

AGIP provides intellectual property services across three main categories: IP Prosecution, IP Enforcement, and IP Consultancy.

IP Prosecution

AGIP's IP Prosecution services cover the registration, maintenance, and recordal of intellectual property rights for clients worldwide, delivered through fully established offices in over 30 jurisdictions or through a network of carefully selected agents and associates.

Trademark

AGIP has a proven track record in trademark protection and has successfully registered over half a million trademarks on behalf of its clients. AGIP manages the protection of nearly half of the Fortune Global 500 companies seeking trademark protection in the MENA region.

Patent

Through its operational, liaison, and representative offices worldwide, AGIP has filed more than 27,500 patent applications over a five-year period and serves more than 19,000 patent clients worldwide. AGIP maintains what it describes as the only comprehensive database of published patents in the MENA region.

Patent services include patentability search, freedom to operate (FTO) search, patent landscape search, patent drafting, patent consultation, patent portfolio management, patent monitoring, and pharmaceutical patent tracking (Pharma-Watch).

Industrial Design

Industrial design registration grants exclusive rights over the visual appearance of products, enabling rights holders to prevent others from making, importing, renting, selling, or distributing without authorization. AGIP conducts analysis of the best registration options and performs all necessary steps across relevant jurisdictions.

Copyright

AGIP offers fully integrated copyright filing and protection services for rights holders in all industries, providing prima facie evidence of ownership for architects, artists, designers, scientists, musicians, writers, and other creative individuals. AGIP also assists copyright holders in cases of infringement.

Domain Names

AGIP is an ICANN-accredited registrar, providing a full range of domain name registration services including generic top-level domains (gTLDs), country code top-level domains (ccTLDs), and internationalized domain name ccTLDs (IDN ccTLDs), as well as bulk registrations, renewals, transfers, and bulk transfers.

Plant Variety Protection

AGIP advises clients on the filing, processing, and attainment of plant variety rights throughout countries of interest, providing breeders with exclusive production and marketing rights.

Trade Secrets

AGIP provides legal advice and protection strategies for trade secret assets. Unlike other forms of IP, trade secrets require no registration but depend on maintaining adequate confidentiality measures. AGIP advises on protection under applicable national laws and unfair competition principles.

Customs Recordation

AGIP works closely with customs authorities in multiple countries to prevent the import and export of counterfeit goods. AGIP has signed Memoranda of Understanding (MoUs) with several governmental customs authorities, and assists clients in recording their trademarks with customs departments as the first line of defense against counterfeiting and infringement.

Geographical Indications

AGIP has provided technical and legal assistance to several countries in establishing databases of geographical indications and in drafting modernized laws for their protection.

IP Portfolio Management

Through its IP Portfolio Management Department, AGIP provides a comprehensive range of services to help brand owners make strategic decisions about their IP assets, drawing strategies and roadmaps to ensure the efficient use of such assets in the marketplace.

Single Power of Attorney

AGIP's Single Power of Attorney service enables clients to authorize AGIP through one Power of Attorney to cover multiple countries across the MENA region simultaneously, saving time, effort, and costs on legalization formalities across jurisdictions.

Global Trademark Watch

AGIP's Global Trademark Watch Service monitors international trademark publications for identical or similar trademarks, alerting clients and advising on appropriate protective legal action worldwide.

IP Enforcement

AGIP defends its clients' intellectual property rights against unauthorized use by third parties before legal authorities and courts.

Litigation

AGIP pleads in civil, commercial, and criminal lawsuits related to labor, tax, administrative, commercial, and civil disputes before courts of all types and instances, covering disputes related to trademark portfolios, investments, and legal obligations.

Cease & Desist

AGIP's legal team drafts cease and desist letters to infringing parties, urging them to stop illegal use of trademarks, saving clients time and resources prior to litigation.

Market Search

AGIP employs professionally trained inspectors who continuously investigate markets to detect counterfeit marks. Upon detection, AGIP immediately alerts the client and advises on available legal action.

Negotiation and Settlement

AGIP handles disputes relating to the wrongful acquisition and unauthorized use of intellectual property rights, helping negotiate and draft license and settlement agreements in IP infringement cases.

Brand Protection

AGIP's Brand Protection Department (BPD) provides a one-window service hub for brand owners, covering both offline and online brand protection.

Offline brand protection services include litigation, legal consultations, customs measures, franchise agreement drafting, cease and desist letters, and market investigation.

Online brand protection services include online search for infringing websites and social media pages, brand listening, takedown of infringing pages, domain name dispute handling, DMCA copyright takedown, and counterfeit goods detection.

Patent Enforcement

AGIP provides patent portfolio audit services, patent infringement follow-up for pharmaceutical and biotechnology clients, and full legal support for patent litigation including opposition, infringement, and invalidation proceedings.

IP Consultancy

AGIP offers professional technical advice in all aspects of IP rights through expert qualified lawyers and specialized staff of different backgrounds.

Licensing & Franchising

AGIP provides drafting of licensing and franchising agreements, legal consultations on compatibility with Arab laws, mediation, and litigation. AGIP also helps brand owners draft franchise agreements compliant with local laws together with detailed operation manuals.

IP Valuation

AGIP determines the financial value of all intellectual property rights including brands, trademarks, patents, copyrights, trade secrets, and industrial designs, performed through licensing, selling IP assets, or through mergers and acquisitions.

Contract Drafting

AGIP prepares and reviews all types of business agreements regardless of sector, including labor-related contracts, IP agreements, and commercial agreements.

Strategy Configuration

AGIP works closely with local entrepreneurs and businesses to help them understand their IP rights and determine what to protect, when, and where, with a focus on representing local SMEs in patents, trademarks, and designs to help them penetrate international markets.

Patent Consultations

AGIP provides technical and legal consultations on responding to office actions, patent filing strategy, patent linkage, parallel importation, patent term adjustment, regulatory matters for pharmaceutical companies in the MENA region, and data exclusivities.

Geographic presence

AGIP's head office is located at AGIP Building, 104 Mecca Street, Um-Uthaina, Amman, Jordan. All regional offices report to the Amman head office, which provides quality control, training, technical know-how, consultations, financing, and centralized financial management to all offices in the network.

AGIP operates fully established offices in more than 30 jurisdictions, with country offices across the Arab world and in Turkey, Pakistan, China, Iran, Russia, Nigeria, Malaysia, and Indonesia.

Country offices

World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO)

AGIP has organized and sponsored, in coordination with the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO), training programs for members of the judiciary and district attorneys across multiple Arab countries. AGIP has also co-published intellectual property guides with WIPO.

World Trade Organization (WTO)

AGIP has coordinated with the World Trade Organization (WTO) on training initiatives for legal professionals across Arab jurisdictions.

International Trademark Association (INTA)

AGIP is an active member of the International Trademark Association (INTA). AGIP is the recipient of the INTA Volunteer Service Award (2018) and an INTA Thank You Letter (2015).

International Association for the Protection of Intellectual Property (AIPPI)

AGIP is a member of the International Association for the Protection of Intellectual Property (AIPPI), one of the oldest international IP law organizations.

International Federation of Intellectual Property Attorneys (FICPI)

AGIP is a member of the International Federation of Intellectual Property Attorneys (FICPI), the international federation representing private-practice IP attorneys worldwide.

Arab Society for Intellectual Property (ASIP)

AGIP is a founding financial supporter of the Arab Society for Intellectual Property (ASIP). AGIP provided legal experts to assist in drafting IP legislation in multiple Arab states, and jointly organized training programs for Arab judges and legal professionals with WIPO and the WTO.

Licensing Executives Society – Arab Countries (LES-AC)

AGIP is a founding financial supporter of the Licensing Executives Society – Arab Countries (LES-AC), helping establish and sustain the professional IP licensing community across the Arab region.

Intellectual Property Laws in the Arab Countries

A compilation of IP laws from all Arab countries translated into English, comprising over 1,000 pages. Compiled by Talal Abu-Ghazaleh and published by Kluwer Law International. The work serves as a reference for international business professionals, lawyers, jurists, and academics.

Abu-Ghazaleh IP Dictionary

A comprehensive English-Arabic intellectual property terminology dictionary providing specialized definitions of IP terms used in the Arab world. Described as the first publication of its kind.

AGIP Intellectual Property Bulletin

A monthly IP law update publication covering all AGIP-covered jurisdictions, published continuously since 1999. Available in 11 languages.

Co-publications with WIPO

AGIP has co-published intellectual property guides with the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO).

Awards and recognition

Corporate social responsibility

AGIP has organized IP training courses for members of the judiciary, district attorneys, and customs officials in Jordan, Kurdistan (Erbil), the West Bank, Gaza, Bahrain, and Egypt. AGIP has provided technical and legal assistance to governments in drafting IP laws in Bahrain, Yemen, Oman, Tunisia, and Afghanistan, and in establishing geographical indication databases. AGIP has also sponsored seminars, conferences, workshops, and knowledge centers on intellectual property across the Arab region.

External links

• About AGIP
• AGIP Office Directory
• AGIP News
• AGIP Articles
• AGIP Awards
• AGIP on Facebook
• AGIP on Twitter/X
• AGIP on LinkedIn
• Talal Abu-Ghazaleh Global (TAG Global)