Bosnian Council of Ministers Adopts Seven IP Draft Laws

On December 31, 2009, the Council of Ministers of Bosnia and Herzegovina adopted seven draft laws in the field of intellectual property, proposed by the Institute for Intellectual Property of Bosnia and Herzegovina.

The following draft laws were adopted:

• The Draft Law on Copyrights and Related Rights
• The Draft Law on the Collective Management of Copyrights and Related Rights
• The Draft Law on Industrial Property
• The Draft Law on Patents
• The Draft Law on Trademarks
• The Draft Law on the Protection of Geographical Indications and Designations of Origin
• The Draft Law on the Protection of Integrated Circuit Topographies

Bosnia currently has only one law on IP rights, the Law on Industrial Property, which entered into force on August 27, 2002 covering patents, trademarks, designs and geographical indications and designations of origin. The new proposal aims to make separate laws for each IP area, as part of Bosnia’s accession into the European Union and the harmonization of its legislation with the European Union.

According to the new Draft Law on the Protection of Integrated Circuit Topographies, the protection of integrated circuit topographies can be requested within two years from the day of the first commercial exploitation anywhere in the world.

The seven draft laws are expected to be submitted to the Parliamentary Assembly of Bosnia and Herzegovina for further consideration in the near future.

For more information, please contact Alma Vilic in our Bosnia and Herzegovina office.

Source: Institute for Intellectual Property of Bosnia and Herzegovina