Since the new year is a time for implementing changes, we’ve decided to start offering you blogs written by our LESA Counsel on a regular basis. We hope these blogs will help keep you abreast of changes, updates, information, and news that impact your legal practice.
Here’s the first of such blogs. Happy reading!
There have been some recent changes in the legislative framework relating to intellectual property in Canada, and additional changes are expected to be forthcoming.
The Trade-marks Act has been amended twice recently. First, Bill C-31 allows Canada to accede to three trademark treaties: the Madrid Protocol, the Singapore Treaty, and the Nice Agreement. Once ratified, these treaties will allow Canadian businesses access to a trademark system more aligned with what the Canadian Intellectual Property Office calls “international best practice” in order to reduce costs and facilitate the expansion of Canadian businesses into foreign markets.
A second amendment comes through the recent passing of the Combating Counterfeit Products Act (Bill C-8) and involves criminal sanctions against counterfeit goods and new border enforcement measures.
Also afoot are other initiatives, mostly procedural, geared toward changing Canadian filing requirements in order to integrate Canadian processes with international ones. These initiatives involve the amendment of the Patent Act, the Copyright Act, the Industrial Design Act, and the Plant Breeders’ Rights Act.
For more detailed information about the changes to the Trade-marks Act, visit the Canadian Intellectual Property Office’s Trade-marks Act Q & A page.
Karen McDougall, LESA Counsel
