Polish IP & IT law – copyright trademark computer internet telecomm

Archive for: Art. 4(1) API

E-access to public information, case IV SAB/Gl 36/11

August 24th, 2011, Tomasz Rychlicki

The Voivodeship Administrative Court in Gliwice in its judgment of 2 August 2011 case file II SAB/Wa 86/07, held that the request filed in the electronic form i.e via e-mail, is a sufficient request for disclosure of public information. The Court repeated the rule that the request for disclosure of public information can take any form, unless it is sufficiently clear what is requested. The VAC ruled that in order to facilitate the submission of applications, public bodies may prepare their own forms, but the disclosure of public information can not be conditional, based on which form such a request is made.

Polish Patent Office, case II SAB/Wa 99/06

November 25th, 2006, Tomasz Rychlicki

The Voivodeship Administrative Court in Warsaw in a judgment of 24 November 2006, case file II SAB/Wa 99/06, ruled that the public authorities or other bodies performing public functions, in particular the public offices and departments, are required to make public information available in accordance with provisions of article 4(1) point 1 of of the the Polish Act of 6 September 2001 on access to public information – API – (in Polish: Ustawa o dostępie do informacji publicznej) Journal of Laws (Dziennik Ustaw) No. 112, item 1198, with later amendments.

Therefore, there was no doubt for the VAC that in the light of the aforementioned regulation, the Polish Patent Office is the entity obliged to follow the provisions of the API. However, it was also undisputed, that the rules and the procedure on the access to documents including trade mark applications are governed by the Polish Act of 30 June 2000 on Industrial Property Law – IPL – (in Polish: ustawa Prawo własności przemysłowej) of 30 June 2000, published in Journal of Laws (Dziennik Ustaw) of 2001 No. 49, item 508, consolidated text of 13 June 2003, Journal of Laws (Dziennik Ustaw) No. 119, item 1117, with later amendments, served as the basis for the decision to refuse to grant a right of protection.. The provisions of the IPL will constitute lex specialis in relation to the API.