This post is a welcome contribution from Amanda Lotheringen (Senior Manager of Copyright and Enforcement) on the launch of their new training manual. Congrats!
"The Companies and Intellectual Property
Commission (CIPC) recently launched a South African version of a "Training
Manual on Intellectual Property (IP) Crime Prosecution for law Enforcement
Agencies and Prosecutors" prepared by the Honourable Justice Harms, former
Deputy President of the Supreme Court of Appeal, based on a similar
manual prepared for the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO). This
IP Manual was customized by Justice Harms for the South African legal
landscape. The success of the project can be attributed to the close
collaboration between CIPC and WIPO’s Building Respect for IP Division.
With the manual as a backdrop a training
programme was conducted over two and a half days and was attended by senior
Commercial Court prosecutors representing six of the nine Provinces and senior
police officers from the Directorate for Priority Crime Investigation from all
nine Provinces. 38 nominated officials from the above organizations were the
first batch to benefit from this Train
the Trainer programme. Training trainers has proven to be very
effective as a mechanism to promote peer to peer practical training.
The objectives were to build capacity and foster
inter-agency cooperation as cornerstones of effective enforcement of
intellectual property rights (IPRs) in South Africa. Building partnerships and
leveraging on the expertise of such partners greatly assist the CIPC to
strengthen the regulatory environment and efforts geared at combating trade mark
counterfeiting and copyright piracy.
The first day commenced after the Acting
Commissioner for CIPC, Adv Rory Voller welcomed all participants and emphasized
the successes associated with collaboration, especially in training and
education initiatives. He also mentioned the political will and commitment that
the Minster of Trade and Industry, Rob Davies, MP had expressed by way of
listing combatting counterfeiting and piracy as a key priority area for CIPC.
Adv. Voller was followed by the Executive Manager
for Innovation and Creativity, Ms Nomonde Maimela who highlighted cooperation
between investigators and prosecutors as a crucial element of a successful
criminal prosecution. She emphasised the linkages between the IP Manual and the
international obligations and requirements contained in Part III of the
Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights ("TRIPS
Agreement"). Article 61 of the TRIPS Agreement requires members of the
World Trade Organization ("the WTO") to "provide for criminal
procedures and penalties to be applied at least in cases of wilful trademark
counterfeiting or copyright piracy on a commercial scale". South Africa,
as a consequence, adopted the Counterfeit Goods Act 37 of 1997 (GCA) as part of
the legal framework within which to deal with IP-related crimes.
Ms. Maimela
further underscored the value of the IP Manual as a tool to assist
investigators and prosecutors in identifying the essential elements of trade
mark counterfeiting and copyright piracy and to analyse the requirements for
successful prosecution. She closed by emphasising the link between effective
enforcement of IPRs and economic growth.
Louise van Greunen, Director, Building Respect
for IP Division represented WIPO. She commended South Africa as being the first
Member State to have adopted a customised version of the WIPO Training Manual
on Intellectual Property (IP) Crime Prosecution for law Enforcement Agencies
and Prosecutors and thanked the CIPC for their commitment to build capacity in
this important area.
The training was conducted at the highest level
with most of the substantive lectures being presented by the author of the IP
Manual, Justice Harms."
