Australian Made Australian Grown trade mark – proposed rule changes

Overview

Australian Made Campaign Limited (AMCL) has applied to the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) to vary the rules of the Australian Made, Australian Grown certification trade mark. The ACCC is inviting comments on the application.

Particular proposed changes relate to:

• the calculation of licence fees
• requiring licensees to execute warranties and indemnities instead of statutory declarations
• adding further examples of processes that are considered to not be a ‘substantial transformation’
• amending the grounds on which a licence can be terminated.

You can find a copy of AMCL’s application documents below.

Why your views matter

Under the Trade Marks Act 1995, the ACCC must approve variations to CTM rules. The ACCC is particularly interested in submissions relating to whether the amended rules would be likely to:

• cause detriment to the public (for example, beyond the effect on individual licensees)
• impact on the ability of any business to compete in any market, and
• lead to a negative impact on consumers, such as leading to misrepresentations regarding the quality or origin of goods that bear the trade mark. 

If you want more information on what issues the ACCC has to consider in assessing certification trade marks, see our letter below and Certification Trade Marks: the role of the ACCC.

Update

On 4 April 2014 the ACCC issued its initial assessment of the application to vary the rules.

The ACCC proposed, subject to any request for a conference or lodgement of written submissions, to approve the application.

Please see the letter below for more information.

The ACCC did not receive any submissions on its initial assessment. On 20 June 2014 the ACCC issued a final assessment approving the application. Please see below for a link to a copy of the amended rules.