Draft Intellectual Property (Unregistered Rights) (Jersey) Law 201-

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A decision made 7 October 2010 regarding: Draft Intellectual Property (Unregistered Rights) (Jersey) Law 201-.

Decision Reference: MD-E-2010-0155
Decision Summary Title :	Draft Intellectual Property (Unregistered Rights) (Jersey) Law 201-		Date of Decision Summary:	29 September 2010
Decision Summary Author:	Director Strategic Development		Decision Summary: Public or Exempt? (State clauses from Code of Practice booklet)	Public
Type of Report: Oral or Written?	Written		Person Giving Oral Report:	N/A
Written Report Title :	Report on the Draft Intellectual Property (Unregistered Rights) (Jersey) Law 201-		Date of Written Report:	29 September 2010
Written Report Author:	Intellectual Property Strategy Manager		Written Report : Public or Exempt? (State clauses from Code of Practice booklet)	Public
Subject: Draft Intellectual Property (Unregistered Rights) (Jersey) Law 201-
Decision(s): The Minister approved the Draft Intellectual Property (Unregistered Rights) (Jersey) Law 201- and attached report and signed the declaration of compatibility with the European Convention on Human Rights. The Minister directed that the documents be lodged au Greffe soas to allow the Law to be debated by the States before the end of the year.
Reason(s) for Decision: This draft Law on unregistered intellectual property rights is being presented to the States Assembly for approval in order to give Jersey a modern, but balanced, legal framework that protects creative content. The development of intellectual property law is a high priority for Economic Development because it is believed that intellectual property, particularly when linked to e commerce, could be a major potential contributor to Jersey’s economy in the future. Ministerial policy is to ensure that Jersey is an attractive place for the intellectual property and digital economy based businesses and a modern intellectual property framework is consistent with that policy. It is considered that Jersey should be capable of joining the WTO should it become desirable to do so. Compliance with the Trade Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights Agreement (TRIPS) is a pre-requisite for WTO membership. This law has therefore been drafted to enable Jersey to comply with the TRIPS provisions related to unregistered intellectual property rights. Whether or not Jersey signs up to the WTO, this law will enable Jersey to seek extension of other conventions and treaties in the area of the unregistered intellectual property rights. There is a strong case for doing this because intellectual property dependant businesses consider convention membership to be a pre-requisite when deciding where to locate business. Law in Jersey on copyright is very old and needs to be updated. Jersey’s competitive position is being eroded as it lags far behind many other jurisdictions in providing a modern framework for intellectual property rights. The Law Officers’ Department has advised that the Law is compatible with the European Convention on Human Rights.
Resource Implications: There are a number of circumstances where the Minister for Economic Development could be involved in resolving issues referred to him or her in their capacity as the Licensing Authority. It is believed that this will in practice occur infrequently or not at all. The cost and manpower for dealing with such enquiries will be met from within existing resources. If there is greater demand for the Licensing Authority’s services provision has been made to enable the recovery of costs.
Action required: The Law, associated report and signed statement of compatibility with the European Convention on Human Rights to be lodged au Greffe so as to allow the Sates de debate the Law before the end of the year.
Signature: Senator A.J.H.Maclean		Position: Minister
Date Signed:		Date of Decision (If different from Date Signed):