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Newsletter – October 2022

21 October 2022 By In Newsletters No Comments

October 2022 update:

  • Impacts of NZ – EU Trade Agreement on Intellectual Property
  • Tips on Due Diligence Regarding your Patent a Application
  • 2022 35th IPSANZ Annual Conference
  • Public Holiday (NZ)

Impacts of NZ – EU trade agreement on intellectual property

In June 2022, New Zealand and the European Union concluded negotiations on a free trade agreement (FTA). As the European Union is New Zealand’s fourth largest trading partner, this Agreement creates new opportunities for New Zealand businesses and will aid in the recovery of the New Zealand economy post COVID-19. A 30% increase in trade is expected between New Zealand and the European Union and 97% of New Zealand’s exported goods will become duty free within the next 7 years.

The impacts on intellectual property have been negotiated to adhere to existing rights and obligations under international intellectual property agreements.

Important changes include:

  • New Zealand has agreed to extend copyright protection terms by 20 years, namely from 50 years to 70 years for authors, performers, and producers. Implementation of these changes in the Copyright Act 1994 are required to be completed within 4 years from the Agreement’s entry into force.
  • New Zealand’s Geographical Indicators (GI’s) regime, which currently only covers wines and spirits, will be extended to include agricultural products, foodstuffs, and other beverages
  • New Zealand and the European Union will protect a list of each other’s GI’s. This means that certain European Union protected GI’s will be reserved for the use of the European producers. This includes terms like “feta” and “sherry.” Likewise with certain New Zealand GI’s being reserved for our producers. Twenty-three New Zealand wine GI’s have been protected. This includes Marlborough, Central Otago, Waiheke Island and Martinborough. These protections will be phased in over a 5–9-year period.
  • An agreement has been made to establish an artist resale right, as agreed in a separate United Kingdom FTA.
  • To mirror a commitment under the UK FTA, New Zealand has agreed to make efforts to agree to the Hague Agreement Concerning the International Registration of Industrial Designs (Hague Agreement).
  • New Zealand has made sure that the FTA is flexible to ensure appropriate response and recognition of the Crowns Te Tiriti o Waitangi obligations.

New Zealand did not agree to change patent or data protection rules which may have impacted costs of medicines and agricultural chemicals.

Zone can help you protect your IP in the European Union. If you would like any advice about protecting your IP, or any of the above changes, please contact us.

Tips on Due Diligence Before Filing Your Patent Application

It is important to ensure you and your organisation conduct due diligence as part of your decision to file a patent application for any new innovations you have developed. Critical to this is ensuring that your team members understand the essential aspects of patent protection and matters to keep in mind during research and development of innovations.

Here are some due diligence considerations to keep in mind:

  • What stage is the invention at? Is more development required?
  • Is the invention patentable, and do you want to apply for patent protection, or are there other options available for protection?
  • Has there been any non-confidential disclosures of the invention? If so, where, when and why?
  • What are the budget considerations?
  • Who owns the rights to the invention?
  • Are there any third-party considerations? Are there contractors or other third parties involved in development of the invention?
  • What is the current state of the art around technology of your invention? Is any novelty or freedom-to-operate searching required?

At Zone, we can help you work through these and other questions that should form part of your patent filing due diligence.

The addition of Julie to our patent team last year has strengthen our patent attorney service offering. Please contact Julie for any patent enquiries

2022 35th IPSANZ Annual Conference

Over the weekend of 16th-18th September Chris attended the 35th Annual IPSANZ conference at the park Hyatt, Melbourne.

The conference was an opportunity for IP Professionals to attend educational sessions to further their knowledge.

We look forward to passing the knowledge learnt onto our clients.

Public Holiday (New Zealand)

Our offices will be closed on Monday 24th October 2022 for Labour Day, a New Zealand public holiday.
The New Zealand Intellectual property office will also be closed.