SIVACRACY.NET: IP Law in Iraq

Soon after the invasion of Iraq, Paul Bremer rewrote the patent and copyright laws of Iraq.

Today we learn from news@uspto.gov (the Patent and Trademark Office newsletter):

USPTO Hosts Iraqi Delegation
Last Friday, the USPTO hosted a delegation of 33 high-ranking Iraqi government and private sector officials for an all-day seminar on the World Trade Organization (WTO) Agreement on Trade-related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPs). The delegation comprises the Iraqi National Committee on WTO Accession and comes from 14 different Ministries: the Ministries of Justice, Planning, Trade, Finance, Industry and Minerals, Health, Transport, Science and Technology, Central Bank of Iraq, Foreign Affairs, Culture, Interior, Agriculture, Communications, as well as the Iraqi Industrial Federation and the Chamber of Commerce, two private sector organizations.

Deputy Under Secretary of Commerce for Intellectual Property Steve Pinkos opened the seminar and noted, "it is indeed remarkable that we are hosting you today. It wasn't long ago that contact between our governments at this technical level was impossible." Patent, trademark, copyright and enforcement experts from the Office of International Relations gave presentations on the background and obligations in each area of intellectual property. A negotiator from the U.S. Trade Representative's Office discussed the future of the TRIPs Agreement.

The Government of Iraq received WTO Observer Status in February 2004. To prepare for their accession process, the Iraqi National Committee on WTO Accession, is spending two weeks visiting Washington agencies to discuss all WTO disciplines. This 2-week program, organized by the Department of Commerce's (DOC) Office of Iraq Reconstruction and Investment Task Force, includes participation by DOC, USTR, State Department Customs, The U.S. Department of Agriculture, Treasury, the World Bank and various private sector groups.

The Government of Iraq is very committed to regaining its leadership position in its region, through membership in the world multilateral trading system. Under Saddam Hussein, Iraq had repudiated membership in the WTO.

Iraq's accession to the WTO will be greatly assisted by the fact that their current intellectual property laws are largely compliant with TRIPs substantive obligations. Previous Iraqi intellectual property laws dated to the 1950s and 1970s. However, USPTO officials working with the Coalition Provisional Authority (CPA) undertook the modernization of Iraq's intellectual property laws with the approval of the Iraqi Governing Council. Adequate and effective enforcement of these laws will be necessary to facilitate Iraq's accession process.

The USPTO has already been active in providing technical assistance to Iraq. In August, the USPTO co-hosted a judicial training program with the Jordanian Intellectual Property Association and the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) in Amman, Jordan. In addition to several hundred Jordanian judges, Government officials, and private sector representatives, six Iraqi judges participated. This program provided an important opportunity for the Iraqi judges to exchange experiences with their Jordanian counterparts as well as with USPTO and WIPO experts.

I take it one is supposed to assume that the "delegation of 33 high-ranking Iraqi government and private sector officials" compris[ing] the Iraqi National Committee on WTO Accession and com[ing] from 14 different Ministries..." will still be in power (and will have some credible authority) after the elections, and will enforce the new intellectual property laws imposed by Bremer.