There is a prohibition on the registration of ‘trade marks which are contrary to public policy or to accepted principles of morality’ in the European Union (see Article 7(1)(f) of the Regulation (EU) 2017/1001 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 14 June 2017 on the European Union trade mark). Until as recently… Continue reading ‘Immoral’ Trademarks and Freedom of Expression: The EU and the USA Compared
Towards the end of last year, I was invited by the editorial board of the National Law School of India Review (NLSIR) to make a contribution to NLSIR Online. I chose to write a short piece on the 2018 decision of the WTO Panel in the Australian Plain Packaging case and its implications for the principle… Continue reading Territoriality, Tobacco, Trademarks, and the TRIPS Agreement
There is a trend towards legal harmonization in Africa. Or so it seems. Only time will tell how the current events and developments will eventually play out. This trend towards harmonization is quite noticeable in the field of intellectual property law. In recent years, there have been two key initiatives aimed at the harmonization of… Continue reading The Harmonization of IP Law in Africa: A Human Rights Perspective
As you may already be aware, South Africa’s Department of Trade and Industry has recently published the ‘Intellectual Property Policy of the Republic of South Africa Phase 1 2018‘ i.e. a new IP policy document. I believe that this document will be subject to critical analysis by other commentators in the coming weeks/months. In this… Continue reading South Africa’s New IP Policy: A Human Rights Perspective
In my last post, I examined the interface between Article 10(1) of the Berne Convention and the Three Step Test. In this post, the last in this series, I will examine the interface between Article 10(2) of the Berne Convention and the Three Step Test. In this regard, I will be drawing on a forthcoming… Continue reading Article 10 of the Berne Convention and the Three Step Test (Part 5)
In this post, I intend to examine the interface between Article 10(1) of the Berne Convention and Article 13 of the TRIPS Agreement. In this regard, I will be drawing extensively on a recent paper by Tanya Aplin and Lionel Bently titled, ‘Displacing the Dominance of the Three-Step Test: The Role of Global, Mandatory Fair… Continue reading Article 10 of the Berne Convention and the Three Step Test (Part 4)
In my last post, I examined the interface between Articles 9(2) and 10 of the Berne Convention. In that post, I concluded with the view that Article 10 is distinct from and not subject to the requirements of Article 9(2) of the Berne Convention. I also raised a question about the impact of Article 13… Continue reading Article 10 of the Berne Convention and the Three Step Test (Part 3)
In my previous post, I introduced Article 10 of the Berne Convention. In this post, I want to focus on Article 9(2) of the Berne Convention which contains what has become known as the three step test. Article 9(2) of the Berne Convention provides that: “It shall be a matter for legislation in the countries… Continue reading Article 10 of the Berne Convention and the Three Step Test (Part 2)
I want to start a series of posts on the relationship between Article 10 of the Berne Convention and the ‘Three Step Test.’ The Berne Convention for the Protection of Literary and Artistic Works (simply known as the Berne Convention) is the first multilateral agreement on copyright and it has been revised a number of… Continue reading Article 10 of the Berne Convention and the Three Step Test (Part 1)
Last week, the Indian government released its much awaited National Intellectual Property Rights Policy. As stated in the document, the rationale behind the policy ‘lies in the need to create awareness about the importance of IPRs as a marketable financial asset and economic tool.’ This rationale is clearly reflected in some of the objectives contained… Continue reading India’s Intellectual Property Policy and Human Rights
Emmanuel Oke 