The Qatari Council of Ministers ratified on September 27, 2007 a draft law on Border Measures related to Intellectual Property. The draft law was forwarded to the competent authorities for further review and approval. In general, the draft law is expected to contain provisions on customs activities related to the protection of intellectual property in the field of import and export of goods. The draft law aims at strengthening border control measures in order to deal with piracy and counterfeiting and is expected to be consistent with the special provisions of border measures of the Agreement on Trade Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights concluded within the framework of the World Trade Organization (WTO). It is worth noting here that Qatar became a member of the WTO on January 13, 1996. The WTO extends to agreements concerning not only the trade in goods and services but also to the trade-related aspects of intellectual property (TRIPS). TRIPS, Part III, Section 4 describes the specific requirements for border measures in order to provide an enhanced and effective level of intellectual property protection.
We will be commenting further on this development in future issues of the Saba Bulletin.
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