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PART 4 Agents and Representatives Rule 59. Those persons, meeting the requirements laid down in Article 157 of the Patent Law, desirous of being registered in the Special Register of Industrial Property Agents, shall file an application addressed to the Director of the Industrial Property Registry, accompanying the following documents: 1. Title held or notarial evidence of the same. 2. Authenticated photocopy of national identity document. 3. Declaration of not being indicted or having been convicted of fraud. 4. Declaration of permanent domicile in Spain. 5. Declaration of not being within the grounds of incompatibility provided in Article 159 of the Law. 6. Receipt showing bond has been posted, at the disposal of the Director of the Industrial Property Registry, as provided in Rule 61. 7. Copy of the insurance policy for civil liability arranged as established in Rule 62. 8. Receipt for payment of Agents registration fee. Rule 60. The bond to be posted by Industrial Property Agents shall preferentially guarantee the liabilities they may incur with respect to the Industrial Property Registry in the exercise of their profession. The amount of such bond shall be 143,300 pesetas. Rule 61. The bond shall be posted at the time of applying for registration on the Register. Rule 62. The civil liability insurance to which Article 157(d) of the Patent Law refers shall guarantee the damages caused by Industrial Property Agents in exercising their profession, up to a minimum sum of 7,165,000 pesetas. Such insurance may be by way of collective policy, provided the civil liability coverage of each and every one of the Agents included in the policy reaches the minimum indicated. Industrial Property Agents shall each year provide evidence to show that the policy continues in force, notifying any change introduced into the original agreed terms. Rule 63. The amount of the bond and of the civil liability insurance mentioned respectively in Rules 60 and 62 of the present Implementing Regulations may be updated every three years in accordance with the cost of living index, by Order of the Ministry of Industry and Energy. Rule 64. Having examined the documentation, and being in conformity, the Director of the Industrial Property Registry shall grant registration in the Special Register of Industrial Property Agents, following oath or promise to faithfully and legally comply with his office, to maintain professional secrecy and not represent opposing interests in the same matter, and shall issue the corresponding title, until which time he shall be unable to act as such Agent. Once registration has been effected, it shall be published in the "Boletin Oficial del Estado". Rule 65. To accredit representation, the Agent shall accompany an authorization signed by the interested party, which shall be incorporated into the official file. Such authorization shall be filed within a maximum one-month term from the date of filing the brief at the Industrial Property Registry, except in the case of patent and utility model applications, where the omission shall be considered as a formal defect and the authorization may consequently be submitted within the term indicated in Rules 18.1 and 42.3 respectively, of the present Implementing Regulations. Should the Registry have doubts about the authenticity of such authorization, it may demand legalization of the signature. Rule 66. In acting before the Registry, Agents may avail themselves of employees or assistants who, under their control, surveillance and liability, shall perform the material steps inherent to the Agent's task - such as the payment of fees, filing of documents, appearance to collect official notifications, collection of title documents or the like - for which purpose they shall present the corresponding authorization, which shall be sealed and approved annually by the Secretary General of the Registry. Rule 67. To be an Agent's employee or assistant it shall be necessary to be of age and to be free of the established incompatibilities. Rule 68. The Director of the Registry and, by delegation, the Secretary General, may, by founded decision, oppose acts performed by an employee or assistant, informing the employer Agent. Against such decision remedy of appeal may be filed to the Minister of the Department. Rule 69. Industrial Property Agents may delegate their representation in a fellow Agent, but in such case the Agent acting shall at all times precede their signature with: "By my fellow Agent, Mr./Ms.", stating the registration numbers of both. In those cases in which a substitute may intervene, their liability shall be joint with that of the substituted Agent, and she/he shall not, in exercising such delegation, act in other cases to which she/he may be party, bearing another representation with other interests. Should such occur, official action shall be declared on the case and the applicant shall be notified directly, granting them a fifteen-day term to appear or, if desired, to name another Agent to represent them. Rule 70. Agents may not, in their relations with the Industrial Property Registry, use any name except their own, followed by indication of their Agent status and professional address. Rule 71. The financial liabilities which Agents or their employees may incur shall be charged against the bond posted, by founded decision of the Director of the Industrial Property Registry. Rule 72. Independently of the civil or criminal liability which may be incurred by them, the Industrial Property Registry may revoke the authorization granted to Agents' employees who fail to comply with the preceding Rule, notifying the Agent themselves. Rule 73. The Ministry of Industry and Energy, at the proposal of the Industrial Property Registry, shall periodically convene Industrial Property courses, to facilitate the training of Industrial Property Agents. The Ministry of Industry and Energy shall grant a qualifying diploma to Agents successfully completing such courses. Rule 74. Agents shall be suspended from professional exercise on either of the following grounds: (a) When the bond posted is below the amount ordered in these Implementing Regulations and until the required sum is reached. (b) Failure to assure that the civil liability policy continues in force, until assured. Rule 75. In the event of withdrawal of the Agent's name from the Register, on any of the grounds in Article 158 of the Law, at the request of the interested party or of their successor, the bond shall be cancelled in accordance with the rules laid down in the General State Contracting Regulations. |
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