1. The Chairman said that, since the Council's meeting in June 2012, the Russian Federation, a new Member of the WTO, had made its initial notification of its laws and regulations. The list of notified laws and regulations was being circulated in document IP/N/1/RUS/1, and the texts of these laws and regulations were being made available in sub-series of documents in electronic form on the Documents Online database. Its responses to the Checklist of Issues of Enforcement had been circulated in document IP/N/6/RUS/1. The Russian Federation had also made two notifications relating to Article 1.3, which had been circulated in document IP/N/2/RUS/1.
2. In addition, the Council had received a number of updates to earlier notifications of laws and regulations notified under Article 63.2. of the Agreement:
• Norway had notified its Designs, Patents Act and Trademarks Acts and related regulations;
• The United States had notified various laws and regulations relating to patents, trademarks, copyright and border enforcement;
• Korea had notified a Framework Act on Intellectual Property together with an Enforcement Decree of that Act; it had also notified an updated list of its main dedicated laws and regulations related to the TRIPS Agreement;
• Colombia had notified a law implementing its commitments under the Trade Promotion Agreement between Colombia and the United States and its Amending Protocol; and a number of amendments to decrees. It had also notified a law approving the Protocol Relating to the Madrid Agreement Concerning the International Registration of Marks; on 29 May 2012, Colombia deposited its instrument of accession with WIPO; consequently, the treaty will enter into force for Colombia on 29 August 2012;
• Uruguay had notified changes to a number of administrative provisions of its IP legislation, and its responses to the Checklist of Issues on Enforcement;
• Chinese Taipei had notified its Trademark Act 2011 and related standards for trademarks fees; as well as the Enforcement Rules of the Trademark Act;
• Cuba had notified three Decree-Laws on Inventions and Registered Designs, on the protection of plant varieties, and on the Layout-Design of Integrated Circuits; as well as a Resolution on Rules on Biological Diversity, and a Resolution on Cuba's national industrial property system;
• Mexico had notified several updates to its industrial property legislation, as well as a number of declarations relating to certain geographical indications;
• Nicaragua had notified a law on trademarks and geographical indications; decrees on its accession to the WIPO Copyright Treaty, WIPO Performances and Phonograms Treaty, the International Convention on Plant Variety Protection; the Budapest Treaty on Microorganisms; and the Patent Co-operation Treaty; as well as a Decree on the Promotion and Protection of IPRs in Nicaragua. In addition, it had updated its responses to the Checklist of Issues on Enforcement; and
• Australia had notified its Intellectual Property Laws Amendment (Raising the Bar) Act 2012; certain amendments to its laws and regulations on geographical indications; Trademarks Amendment (Tobacco Plain Packaging) Act 2011; as well as Tobacco Plain Packaging Act 2011 and related regulations.
These notifications of laws and regulations were being made available in the IP/N/1- series of documents, and the actual texts of laws in sub-series of documents in electronic form on the Documents Online database. Uruguay's and Nicaragua's responses to the Checklist of Issues on Enforcement were being circulated in the IP/N/6- series of documents.
3. As regards notifications of contact points under Article 69 for the exchange of information and cooperation on trade in infringing goods, since our meeting in June, the Russian Federation had notified its contact point. In addition, an update to a contact point notified earlier had been received from Nicaragua. The information on the Members' transparency toolkit page had been updated accordingly.
4. The Chairman urged those Members whose initial notifications of laws and regulations remained incomplete to submit the outstanding material without delay. Equally, he urged other Members to fulfil their obligation under the TRIPS Agreement to notify any subsequent amendments of their laws and regulations without delay after their entry into force. He especially encouraged Members to notify changes made to their laws and/or regulations to implement the Decision on TRIPS and public health.
