Review of TRIPS Implementing Legislation - Search

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Article 63.2 of the TRIPS Agreement requires Members to notify the laws and regulations made effective by that Member pertaining to the subject matter of the Agreement to the Council for TRIPS in order to assist the Council in its review of the operation of the Agreement.

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Page 4 of 677   |   Number of documents : 13533

Document symbol Notifying Member Member raising question Question Answer Date of document distribution  
IP/Q/FRA/1 France United States of America 4. Please explain whether and how France provides full retroactive protection to works, phonograms and performances from other WTO Members, as required by Berne Article 18, as incorporated through Article 9.1 of TRIPS, and TRIPS Article 14.6, and give the date back to which protection extends as to each of these categories of subject matter.
Article 18 of the Berne Convention is incorporated into French law as a result of the ratification of the Convention and of the Universal Convention of 1952. Consequently, a work protected by copyright in its country of origin may claim protection. Hence, only works that have fallen into the public domain are not protected. All phonograms whose protection has not expired in the country of origin are protected with respect to uses made subsequently to the entry into force of the French Law of 3 July 1985 (1 January 1986).
22/10/1996
IP/Q/BHR/1, IP/Q2/BHR/1, IP/Q3/BHR/1, IP/Q4/BHR/1 Bahrain, Kingdom of Canada 1. Please describe how the enforcement obligations (Articles 41-61 of the TRIPS Agreement) have been implemented.
The respective draft Law for each form of intellectual property rights implements the provisions of Articles 41-61 of the TRIPS Agreements. Details are available in Bahrain's responses to the Checklist of Issues on Enforcement available as document IP/N/6/BHR/1.
24/10/1996
IP/Q/BHR/1, IP/Q2/BHR/1, IP/Q3/BHR/1, IP/Q4/BHR/1 Bahrain, Kingdom of Canada 2. What protection does your copyright legislation afford to "foreign works"?
Articles 59 and 60 of the draft Law on Copyright and Neighbouring Rights provide for the works which are protected within the scope of the said Law. With respect to literary, artistic and scientific works, Article 59 provides: 1) The provisions of this Law on the protection of literary, artistic and scientific work shall apply to: a) Works of authors who are nationals of, or have their domicile in, the State of Bahrain; b) Works first published in the State of Bahrain, and works first published in another country and also published in the State of Bahrain within 30 days, irrespective of the nationality or residence of their authors; c) Cinematographic works, the producer of which has his headquarters or domicile in the State of Bahrain; and d) Works of architecture erected in the State of Bahrain and other artistic works incorporated in a building or other structure located in the State of Bahrain. 2) The provisions of this Law shall also apply to works that are eligible for protection in the State of Bahrain by virtue of and in accordance with any international convention or other international agreement to which the State of Bahrain is party. With respect to performers, phonograms and broadcasts, Article 60 provides: 1) The provisions of this Law on the protection of performers shall apply to: a) Performers who are nationals of the State of Bahrain; b) Performers who are not nationals of the State of Bahrain but whose performance: i) Take place in the territory of the State of Bahrain, or; ii) Are incorporated in phonograms that are protected under this Law, or; iii) Have not been fixed in a phonogram but are included in broadcasts qualifying for protection under this Law. 2) The provisions of this Law on the protection of phonograms shall apply to: a) Phonograms the producers of which are nationals of the State of Bahrain; b) Phonograms first fixed in the State of Bahrain; and c) Phonograms first published in the State of Bahrain. 3) The provisions of this Law on the protection of broadcasts shall apply to: a) Broadcasts of broadcasting organisations the headquarters of which are situated in the State of Bahrain, and; b) Broadcasts transmitted from transmitters situated in the State of Bahrain. The provisions of this Law shall also apply to performers, producers of phonograms and broadcasting organisations that are eligible for protection by virtue of and in accordance with any international convention or other international agreement to which the State of Bahrain is party.
24/10/1996
IP/Q/BHR/1, IP/Q2/BHR/1, IP/Q3/BHR/1, IP/Q4/BHR/1 Bahrain, Kingdom of Canada 3. We understand that draft intellectual property legislation is pending. (a) When is such legislation likely to be effectively implemented?
The draft laws are likely to be enacted within the next four to six months. This is dependent on the legislative workload during the next few months. However, it should be pointed out that claims may be based on the provisions of the TRIPS Agreement even without the enactment of the draft laws as the TRIPS Agreement forms part of the national legislation as Bahrain ratified the latter in 1994 by Legislative Decree No. 7.
24/10/1996
IP/Q/BHR/1, IP/Q2/BHR/1, IP/Q3/BHR/1, IP/Q4/BHR/1 Bahrain, Kingdom of Canada (b) What are the key improvements introduced by such draft legislation in respect of TRIPS obligations?
The draft legislation will introduce the following eight dedicated laws: 1. Trademarks 2. Patents and Utility Models 3. Plant Varieties 4. Copyright and Neighbouring Rights 5. Industrial Designs 6. Geographical Indications 7. Layout-Designs of Integrated Circuits 8. Trade Secrets The following are the key improvements introduced by the draft legislation in respect of TRIPS obligations (reference should be made to the text of the draft legislation for a full and complete account of the key improvements): 1. Trademarks The draft Law provides the protection required under Article 16 of the TRIPS Agreement to well-known marks for both goods and services. The registration will be for ten years instead of seven years (renewable for similar periods indefinitely as provided in the existing law). The draft Law also introduces border measures for the protection of trademarks as required under Section 4 of the TRIPS Agreement and enhances the provisions for provisional measures to be in line with Article 50 of the TRIPS Agreement. The draft Law also enhances the provisions for criminal sanctions to be fully in line with Article 61 of the TRIPS Agreement and increases the penalties available under the existing Law. 2. Patents The draft Law will supersede the existing Patents and Industrial Designs Law which was enacted in 1955. It can be said that the draft Law will ensure the availability of a modern and comprehensive Law, for the protection of patents , in line with the requirements of the TRIPS Agreement. The draft Law defines patentability in detail and outlines certain exclusions which do not go beyond those allowed under paragraphs 2 and 3 of Article 27 of the TRIPS Agreement. The rights of the patent owner are enhanced in the draft Law to be in line with Article 28 of the TRIPS Agreement. The draft Law introduces a non-voluntary licensing regime within the limitations and the safeguards provided under Article 31 of the TRIPS Agreement. The draft Law provides for a term of protection of 20 years and introduces the principle of the reversal of the burden of proof as required under Article 34 of the TRIPS Agreement. The draft Law also introduces the concept of provisional measures with the particulars required under Article 50 of the TRIPS Agreement. 3. Plant Varieties The draft Law introduces a new dedicated regime which is not available under the current legislation. The draft Law is based on the UPOV Model Law. 4. Copyright and Neighbouring Rights The draft Law will revamp the existing Law by introducing protection to neighbouring rights and increasing the existing term of protection to be in line with Articles 12 and 14 of the TRIPS Agreement. The draft Law ensures that the limitations and exceptions do not go beyond those allowed under the TRIPS Agreement and specifically states that these should not unreasonably prejudice the legitimate interests of the right holder. The draft Law also ensures that computer programs and databases are provided the protection required under the TRIPS Agreement. Moreover, the draft Law introduces the principle of rental rights as required under Article 11 of the TRIPS Agreement. The draft Law also addresses the issue of retroactive protection as required under Article 14.6 of the TRIPS Agreement. The draft Law also introduces border measures for the protection of copyright as required under Section 4 of the TRIPS Agreement and enhances the provisions for provisional measures to be in line with Article 50 of the TRIPS Agreement. The draft Law also enhances the provisions for criminal sanctions to be fully in line with Article 61 of the TRIPS Agreement and increases the penalties available under the existing Law. 5. Industrial Designs The draft Law will supersede the existing Patents and Industrial Designs Law which was enacted in 1955. It can be said that the draft Law will ensure the availability of a modern and comprehensive Law for the protection of industrial designs in line with the requirements of the TRIPS Agreement. The draft Law revamps the definition of industrial designs to be in line with Article 25.1 of the TRIPS Agreement and introduces the possibility of multi-applications for registration, which should be useful for textile designs. The draft Law revamps and enhances the scope of protection provided to Industrial designs to be in line with the requirements of Article 36 of the TRIPS Agreement. The draft Law also introduces the concept of provisional measures with the particulars required under Article 50 of the TRIPS Agreement. 6. Geographical Indications The draft Law incorporates all the provisions of the TRIPS Agreement as the existing legislation on this matter is only Article 61 of the Law of Commerce which prohibits the unlawful use of a geographical indication and consider such unlawful use as a form of unfair competition. 7. Layout-Designs of Integrated Circuits The draft Law will provide a new legislation dedicated to the protection of layout-designs of integrated circuits and fully incorporates Articles 35 to 38 of the TRIPS Agreement. The existing legislation does not specifically address layout-designs of integrated circuits. 8. Trade Secrets The draft Law will provide a new piece of legislation dedicated to the protection of trade secrets and incorporates the provisions of Article 39 of the TRIPS Agreement, including tests and data submitted to government authorities for obtaining marketing approval of pharmaceutical or of agricultural products which utilise new chemical entities.
24/10/1996
IP/Q/BHR/1, IP/Q2/BHR/1, IP/Q3/BHR/1, IP/Q4/BHR/1 Bahrain, Kingdom of European Union 1. Please describe if your legislation includes measures necessary to protect public health and nutrition, and to promote the public interest in sectors of vital importance to your socio-economic and technological development as mentioned under Article 8 of the TRIPS Agreement. If yes, please explain how such measures are consistent with the provisions of the TRIPS Agreement.
As permitted under Article 27.2 of the TRIPS Agreement, Article 3(a) of the draft law on Patents and Utility Models excludes from Patentability inventions the prevention of the commercial exploitation, within the State of Bahrain, which is necessary to protect public order or morality or to avoid serious damage to the environment. Article 20 of the draft law on Patents and Utility Models provides that inventions with extreme importance to public defence and security may be objected to by the security authorities against the purchase of the invention for a fair and equitable price and also qualify for the grant of a compulsory licence for the exploitation of the invention in accordance with the provisions of the law. Also by virtue of Article 24 of the draft Law on Patents and Utility Models, a non-exclusive compulsory licence for the exploitation of a Patent may be awarded in cases of national emergency or other circumstance of extreme urgency or for public non-commercial use.
24/10/1996
IP/Q/BHR/1, IP/Q2/BHR/1, IP/Q3/BHR/1, IP/Q4/BHR/1 Bahrain, Kingdom of European Union 2. Please state how your legislation provides for the protection of the exclusive rights of authors in relation to their literary and artistic works, as specified in Article 9 of the TRIPS Agreement which requires Members to comply with Articles 1-21 of the Borne Convention and the Appendix to the Borne Convention (1971).
The draft Law on Copyright and Neighbouring Rights will supersede the Copyright Law which was enacted in 1993. The draft Law implements Articles 9 to14 of the TRIPS Agreement. Although not required under the TRIPS Agreement, the draft Law implements Article 6bis of the Berne Convention as Bahrain is party to the said convention. The draft Law also implements many of the provisions of the WIPO Copyright Treaty and WIPO Performances and Phonograms Treaty.
24/10/1996
IP/Q/BHR/1, IP/Q2/BHR/1, IP/Q3/BHR/1, IP/Q4/BHR/1 Bahrain, Kingdom of European Union 3. Please describe the protection accorded to authors of computer programs, databases or compilations of data.
Paragraph 2 of Article 2 of the draft Law on Copyright and Neighbouring Rights provides that computer programmes whether in source or object code are protectable. Similarly, Paragraph 3 of Article 2 provides that databases whether or not computer readable are protectable. Moreover, Paragraph 13 of Article 2 provides that derivative works are protectable. Article 1 defines derivative works as: "Works derived from other existing works, such as translations, musical arrangements, compilation of works, including databases, whether or not computer readable, and collections of expressions of folklore, which, by reason of the arrangement and selection of their contents, are considered creative."
24/10/1996
IP/Q/BHR/1, IP/Q2/BHR/1, IP/Q3/BHR/1, IP/Q4/BHR/1 Bahrain, Kingdom of European Union 4. Please state whether your legislation provides for a rental right and, if so, the works to which it applies.
Article 5(d) of the draft Law on Copyright and Neighbouring Rights provides that the author and his successor in title has exclusive right to authorise or prohibit the use of one or more copies of his work by others for rental or lending to the public. Article 7 provides that such right with respect to computer programs does not apply where the program itself is not the essential object of the rental or lending. Article 7 further provides that the right does not apply with respect to cinematographic works unless such rental or lending has led to widespread copying of such work which is materially impairing the exclusive right of reproduction.
24/10/1996
IP/Q/BHR/1, IP/Q2/BHR/1, IP/Q3/BHR/1, IP/Q4/BHR/1 Bahrain, Kingdom of European Union 5. Please describe the rights granted to performers, producers of phonograms (sound recordings) and broadcasting organisations under your legislation.
With respect to performers, Article 15 of the draft Law on Copyright and Neighbouring Rights provides: "Performers shall enjoy in respect of their performances the following exclusive rights: i) To broadcast or communicate their unfixed performances to the public. ii) To fix their unfixed performances on phonograms. iii) To reproduce their fixed performances on phonograms. iv) Authorise commercial rental or lending to the public of an original or copies of their fixed performances." With respect to producers of phonograms, Article 17 of the draft Law on Copyright and Neighbouring Rights provides that producers of phonograms enjoy the following exclusive rights: i) Prevent any exploitation of their recording in any manner, without prior written authorization, directly or indirectly, including in particular; reproduction, renting, lending, broadcasting or making available to the public through computers or the Internet or other means of technology. ii) Making their recordings available to the public by wire or wireless means or through computers or any other means of technology. With respect to broadcasting organizations, Article 18 of the draft Law on Copyright and Neighbouring Rights provides that broadcasting organizations enjoy the following exclusive rights: a) fixation and reproduction of their broadcasts; b) rebroadcasting by wireless means of their broadcasts; c) communication to the public of their television broadcasts; and d) licensing the exploitation of their fixed or unfixed broadcasts.
24/10/1996
IP/Q/BHR/1, IP/Q2/BHR/1, IP/Q3/BHR/1, IP/Q4/BHR/1 Bahrain, Kingdom of European Union 6. Please state whether your legislation provides for any limitation or exception in relation to each of the rights described above in accordance with the relevant provisions of the Berne and Rome Conventions and in light of Article 13 and 14.6 of the TRIPS Agreement.
The draft Law on Copyright and Neighbouring Rights provides for certain limitations and exceptions to the rights indicated in the response to question 5. These are consistent with the limitations and exceptions allowed under the TRIPS Agreement. The limitations and exceptions are provided under Articles 19 to 24 of the draft Law.
24/10/1996
IP/Q/BHR/1, IP/Q2/BHR/1, IP/Q3/BHR/1, IP/Q4/BHR/1 Bahrain, Kingdom of European Union 7. Please state the terms of protection of each right described above and the work or subject matter to which it applies.
With respect to performers, Article 34 of the draft Law on Copyright and Neighbouring Rights provides the term of protection to a performance for a period of 50 years computed from the first day of the Gregorian calendar year following the year in which the performance was first fixed on a phonogram or, in the absence of such fixation, the year in which the performance took place. With respect to producers of phonograms, Article 35 of the draft Law on Copyright and Neighbouring Rights provides that the term of protection shall last until the end of a period of 50 years computed from the first day of the Gregorian calendar year following the year in which the publication of the phonogram was made or, in the absence of publication, the year in which the performance took place. With respect to broadcasting organizations, Article 36 of the draft Law on Copyright and Neighbouring Rights provides that the protections shall last until the end of a period of 20 years computed from the first day of the Gregorian calendar year following the year in which the broadcast took place.
24/10/1996
IP/Q/BHR/1, IP/Q2/BHR/1, IP/Q3/BHR/1, IP/Q4/BHR/1 Bahrain, Kingdom of European Union 8. Please state how your legislation grants the retroactive protection provided pursuant to Article 18 of the Berne Convention (the obligation of which derives from Article 9 of the TRIPS Agreement) and Article 14.6 of the TRIPS Agreement.
This is accounted for in Articles 63 and 64 of the draft Law on Copyright and Neighbouring Rights. While Article 64 provides that the new Law shall come into effect upon its publication in the Official Gazette, Article 63 provides : The provisions of this Law, with the exception of Articles 49 to 53, shall apply also to works, performances phonograms and broadcasts dating back to before the date of the coming into effect of this Law, provided that the term of protection had not expired under the previous legislation or under the legislation of the country of origin of such works, performances, phonograms or broadcasts that are to be protected or under an agreement or treaty to which the State of Bahrain is party. The Law shall not effect contracts on works, performances, phonograms and broadcasts concluded before the entering into force of this Law.
24/10/1996
IP/Q/BHR/1, IP/Q2/BHR/1, IP/Q3/BHR/1, IP/Q4/BHR/1 Bahrain, Kingdom of European Union 9. Please give the definition of a sign under your national legislation and explain under what conditions it is protectable.
Article 1 of the draft Law on Trademarks provides: "A trademark is any distinctive sign comprised names, works, signatures, letters, symbols, numerals, addresses, seals, designs, pictures, engravings, figurative elements, shapes, wrappings, combination of colours or any combination of such visible signs if used, or intended to be used , for distinguishing the goods or services of one undertaking from those of other undertakings or to indicate the provision of a particular service. Sound and smell may form part of the trademark." Article 3 of the draft Law provides that the following shall not be considered as registerable trademarks and their application for registration shall not be accepted if they have any of the following descriptions: a) Marks that are devoid of any distinctive character or consist of signs that customarily designate the goods or services or the common drawings or pictures of the goods or services. b) Any expression, drawing, picture or mark that is contrary to public order or morality. c) Honorary signs, public and military insignia, flags and other symbols belonging to the State of Bahrain or Arab or international organizations or any of their institutions or belonging to any of the states that accord similar treatment in this respect to the State of Bahrain as well as any imitation of the foregoing matters. d) Symbols of the Red Crescent or Red Cross and emblems of the same character as well as all imitations thereof. e) Similar or identical marks to the symbols that have a purely religious character. f) Geographical names and indications if their use is likely to cause confusion with respect to the origin or source of the goods or services. g) Marks that are likely to mislead the public or that contain false details about the origin or source of the goods or services or their other qualities as well as marks that contain a false, imitated or fictitious commercial name. h) Name of another person or his surname, photograph or emblems unless he or his heirs give their prior approval to the use thereof. i) Particulars relating to honorary titles which the applicant for registration thereof is unable to prove that he is legally entitled to use for such purposes. j) Marks that are identical or similar to a mark that was previously registered by others for the same goods or services for which the mark is to be registered or for an item thereof or a mark that is similar to the aforesaid mark to an extent that may lead to misleading others; or marks the registration of which for certain goods or services may undermine the value of the goods or services that are distinguished by the said mark. k) Any mark, or a fundamental part thereof, which is identical, similar or constitutes a copy, imitation or translation of a well-known trademark for its use to distinguish similar or identical goods or services to the goods or services for which it is famous and is likely to cause confusion with the well-known trade mark or for its use for goods or services in a manner that is likely to cause damage to the owner of the wellknown trade mark and indicates a relationship between it and such goods or services. l) Marks that contain the following words or expressions: 'licence', 'registered', 'registered drawing', 'copyright' or such similar words and expressions.
24/10/1996
IP/Q/BHR/1, IP/Q2/BHR/1, IP/Q3/BHR/1, IP/Q4/BHR/1 Bahrain, Kingdom of European Union 10. Please confirm whether or not services are a protectable subject matter in your trademark law. Please confirm if signs, such as trade names, are protectable. Please describe if elements such as sound, perfumes and containers are protectable.
Please refer to the definition of a trademark provided in the response to question 9.
24/10/1996
IP/Q/BHR/1, IP/Q2/BHR/1, IP/Q3/BHR/1, IP/Q4/BHR/1 Bahrain, Kingdom of European Union 11. Please explain what the requirements of use are, if any, as a condition for a trademark registration. Please explain the definition of use and the conditions of maintenance of a registration in that respect.
Article 4 of the draft Law on Trademarks provides that either use or intended use qualifies for registration. The draft Law does not include a definition of "use". Article 19(b) provides that the court may, upon application by any party with interest, order the registration to be cancelled if satisfied that the trademark has not been used for an uninterrupted period of 5 years for no valid reason.
24/10/1996
IP/Q/BHR/1, IP/Q2/BHR/1, IP/Q3/BHR/1, IP/Q4/BHR/1 Bahrain, Kingdom of European Union 12. Please confirm whether or not your legislation permits that the registration of trademarks be indefinitely renewable.
By virtue of Article 19(b) of the draft Law the registration of a trademark is indefinitely renewable. Article 19(b) provides that the protection of a registered mark shall be for 10 years from the filing date in the State of Bahrain and the right holder may request the renewal of the registration for other equivalent periods provided that he files a request for renewal during the last year of the a particular term of protection.
24/10/1996
IP/Q/BHR/1, IP/Q2/BHR/1, IP/Q3/BHR/1, IP/Q4/BHR/1 Bahrain, Kingdom of European Union 13. Please describe the special requirements, if any, prescribed by your legislation concerning the use of a trademark.
There are no requirements prescribed in the draft Law concerning use of a trademark except as provided under Article 19(b) indicated above under the response to question 11 above.
24/10/1996
IP/Q/BHR/1, IP/Q2/BHR/1, IP/Q3/BHR/1, IP/Q4/BHR/1 Bahrain, Kingdom of European Union 14. Please explain whether or not your trademark registration authority refuses a trademark application if it contains a geographical indication.
By virtue of Article 3(f) and (g) of the draft law on Trademarks, the following are not registerable as trademarks. - those which are identical or similar to geographical names and indication if they are likely to be misleading as regards the origin or source of a good or service. - those which are likely to mislead the public or contain false information concerning the origin or source of a good or service or concerning other features, as well as those which include a fictitious, imitated or counterfeit trade name.
24/10/1996
IP/Q/BHR/1, IP/Q2/BHR/1, IP/Q3/BHR/1, IP/Q4/BHR/1 Bahrain, Kingdom of European Union 15. Please give the definition of a geographical indication in your legislation.
Article 1 of the draft Law on Geographical Indications defines Geographical Indications as follows: Geographical indications are, for the purposes of this law, geographical statements which identify a good as originating in the territory of a member of the World Trade Organization or a State that accord similar treatment to the State of Bahrain, where the quality, reputation or other characteristics of the goods is essentially attributable to such geographical origin.
24/10/1996

Page 4 of 677   |   Number of documents : 13533

 
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