World Intellectual Property Organization-World Trade Organization: Agreement Between WIPO and WTO

 

Article 1

Abbreviated Expressions

For the purposes of this Agreement:

(i) “WIPO”means the World Intellectual Property Organization;

(ii) “WTO”means the World Trade Organization;

(iii) “International Bureau”means the International Bureau of WIPO;

(iv) “WTO Member”means a party to the Agreement Establishing the World
Trade Organization;

(v) “the TRIPS Agreement”means the Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of
Intellectual Property Rights, Annex 1C to the Agreement Establishing the World
Trade Organization;

(vi) “Paris Convention”means the Paris Convention for the Protection of
Industrial Property of March 20, 1883, as revised;

(vii) “Paris Convention (1967)”means the Paris Convention for the Protection
of Industrial Property of March 20, 1883, as revised at Stockholm on July 14,
1967;

(viii) “emblem”means, in the case of a WTO Member, any armorial bearing,
flag and other State emblem of that WTO Member, or any official sign or
hallmark indicating control and warranty adopted by it, and, in the case of an
international intergovernmental organization, any armorial bearing, flag, other
emblem, abbreviation or name of that organization.

Article 2

Laws and Regulations

(1) [Accessibility of Laws and Regulations in the WIPO Collection by WTO
Members and Their Nationals] The International Bureau shall, on request, furnish
to WTO Members and to nationals of WTO Members copies of laws and
regulations, and copies of translations thereof, that exist in its collection,
on the same terms as apply to the Member States of WIPO and to nationals of
the Member States of WIPO, respectively.

(2) [Accessibility of the Computerized Database] WTO Members and nationals
of WTO Members shall have access, on the same terms as apply to the Member
States of WIPO and to nationals of the Member States of WIPO, respectively,
to any computerized database of the International Bureau containing laws and
regulations. The WTO Secretariat shall have access, free of any charge by
WIPO, to any such database.

(3) [Accessibility of Laws and Regulations in the WIPO Collection
by the WTO Secretariat and the Council for TRIPS] (a) Where, on the date of
its initial notification of a law or regulation under Article 63.2 of the TRIPS
Agreement, a WTO Member has already communicated that law or regulation, or a
translation thereof, to the International Bureau and that WTO Member has sent
to the WTO Secretariat a statement to that effect, and that law, regulation or
translation actually exists in the collection of the International Bureau, the
International Bureau shall, on request of the WTO Secretariat, give, free of
charge, a copy of the said law, regulation or translation to the WTO
Secretariat.

(b) Furthermore, if, for the purposes of carrying out its obligations under
Article 68 of the TRIPS Agreement, such as monitoring the operation of the TRIPS
Agreement or providing assistance in the context of dispute settlement
procedures, the Council for TRIPS of the WTO requires a copy of a law or
regulation, or a copy of a translation thereof, which had not previously been
given to the WTO Secretariat under subparagraph (a), and which exists in the
collection of the International Bureau, the International Bureau shall, upon
request of either the Council for TRIPS or the WTO Secretariat, give to the
WTO Secretariat, free of charge, the requested copy.

(c) The International Bureau shall, on request, furnish to the WTO
Secretariat on the same terms as apply to Member States of WIPO any additional
copies of the laws, regulations and translations given under subparagraph (a) or
(b), as well as copies of any other laws and regulations, and copies of
translations thereof, which exist in the collection of the International Bureau.

(d) The International Bureau shall not put any restriction on the use that
the WTO Secretariat may make of the copies of laws, regulations and
translations transmitted under subparagraph (a), (b) or (c).

(4) [Laws and Regulations Received by the WTO Secretariat from WTO
Members] (a) The WTO Secretariat shall transmit to the International Bureau,
free of charge, a copy of the laws and regulations received by the WTO
Secretariat from WTO Members under Article 63.2 of the TRIPS Agreement in the
language or languages and in the form or forms in which they were received, and
the International Bureau shall place such copies in its collection.

(b) The WTO Secretariat shall not put any restriction on the further use
that the International Bureau may make of the copies of the laws and regulations
transmitted under subparagraph (a).

(5) [Translation of Laws and Regulations] The International Bureau shall make
available to developing country WTO Members which are not Member States of
WIPO the same assistance for translation of laws and regulations for the
purposes of Article 63.2 of the TRIPS Agreement as it makes available to Members
of WIPO which are developing countries.

Article 3

Implementation of Article 6of the Paris Convention for the Purposes of
the TRIPS Agreement

(1) [General] (a) The procedures relating to communication of emblems and
transmittal of objections under the TRIPS Agreement shall be administered by the
International Bureau in accordance with the procedures applicable under Article
6 of the Paris Convention (1967).

(b) The International Bureau shall not recommunicate to a State party to the
Paris Convention which is a WTO Member an emblem which had already been
communicated to it by the International Bureau under Article 6 of the Paris
Convention prior to January 1, 1996, or, where that State became a WTO Member
after January 1, 1996, prior to the date on which it became a WTO Member, and
the International Bureau shall not transmit any objection received from the
said WTO Member concerning the said emblem if the objection is received by the
International Bureau more than 12 months after receipt of the communication of
the said emblem under Article 6 of the Paris Convention by the said State.

(2) [Objections] Notwithstanding paragraph (1)(a), any objection received by
the International Bureau from a WTO Member which concerns an emblem that had
been communicated to the International Bureau by another WTO Member where at
least one of the said WTO Members is not party to the Paris Convention, and
any objection which concerns an emblem of an international intergovernmental
organization and which is received by the International Bureau from a WTO
Member not party to the Paris Convention or not bound under the Paris Convention
to protect emblems of international intergovernmental organizations, shall be
transmitted by the International Bureau to the WTO Member or international
intergovernmental organization concerned regardless of the date on which the
objection had been received by the International Bureau. The provisions of the
preceding sentence shall not affect the time limit of 12 months for the lodging
of an objection.

(3) [Information to Be Provided to the WTO Secretariat] The International
Bureau shall provide to the WTO Secretariat information relating to any emblem
communicated by a WTO Member to the International Bureau or communicated by
the International Bureau to a WTO Member.

Article 4

Legal-Technical Assistance and Technical Cooperation

(1) [Availability of Legal-Technical Assistance and Technical Cooperation]
The International Bureau shall make available to developing country WTO
Members which are not Member States of WIPO the same legal-technical
assistance relating to the TRIPS Agreement as it makes available to Member
States of WIPO which are developing countries. The WTO Secretariat shall
make available to Member States of WIPO which are developing countries and are
not WTO Members the same technical cooperation relating to the TRIPS Agreement
as it makes available to developing country WTO Members.

(2) [Cooperation Between the International Bureau and the WTO
Secretariat] The International Bureau and the WTO Secretariat shall enhance
cooperation in their legal-technical assistance and technical cooperation
activities relating to the TRIPS Agreement for developing countries, so as to
maximize the usefulness of those activities and ensure their mutually supportive
nature.

(3) [Exchange of Information] For the purposes of paragraphs (1) and (2), the
International Bureau and the WTO Secretariat shall keep in regular contact

and exchange non-confidential information.

Article 5

Final Clauses

(1) [Entry into Force of this Agreement] This Agreement shall enter into
force on January 1, 1996.

(2) [Amendment of this Agreement] This Agreement may be amended by common
agreement of the parties to this Agreement.

(3) [Termination of this Agreement] If one of the parties to this Agreement
gives the other party written notice to terminate this Agreement, this Agreement
shall terminate one year after receipt of the notice by the other party, unless
a longer period is specified in the notice or unless both parties agree on a
longer or a shorter period.

Done in Geneva on December 22, 1995.

Author: international

Mentioned in these Entries

Trade and Commercial Relations conventions.