In the period 6-7 November this year, at the State Agency on Intellectual Property of the Republic of Moldova (AGEPI) is held the National Workshop on Intellectual Property for Judges of the Republic of Moldova.
The workshop is organized by the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) in cooperation with AGEPI and the National Institute of Justice (NIJ) in order to enhance the skills of judges in the Republic of Moldova on intellectual property dispute settlement.
The meeting is attended by judges from the Supreme Court of Justice, Chisinau Court of Appeal and Riscani District Court of Chisinau.
In opening the Workshop, words of greeting addressed Mrs. Lilia Bolocan, Director General of AGEPI, Mrs. Valeria Sterbet, Doctor of Law, National Institute of Justice, Mrs. Vera Macinskaia, Judge, Supreme Court of Justice of the Republic of Moldova and Mr. Xavier Vermandele, Senior Legal Adviser, Building Respect for Intellectual Property Division, WIPO, Geneva. The speakers stressed the importance of exchanges of experience and the need for their realization for thorough information and effective exercise of intellectual property rights. “Even though Moldova has harmonized its national legislation in the field of intellectual property (IP) with the international and European standards, currently, some problems appear on the implementation of the IP legislation, so our cooperation is very important for IP system protection in the Republic of Moldova”, mentioned Mrs. L. Bolocan, Director General of AGEPI.
Mrs. Valeria Sterbet emphasized: “Intellectual property law is the branch of law with the most spectacular development in recent decades, but it is evident that the problem of exercising and respecting intellectual property rights exist. Thus, improving the enforcement of intellectual property rights through training will lead to more accurate examination of the disputes in question”.
Mrs. Vera Macinskaia, already having rich experience in the field of intellectual property dispute settlement, said that continuous training of judges is a fundamental premise for quality judicial decisions, and broadening of knowledge in the field of intellectual property, familiarization with the experience gained by other states, are particularly necessary actions.
Mr. Xavier Vermandele spoke about the support provided by WIPO to Member States in terms of schooling and training of personnel, including judges, in the field of intellectual property, to ensure the consolidation of the national intellectual property dispute settlement system and to increase the skills of judges of the Republic Moldova in the given field.
In accordance with the provisions of the Workshop Program, international experts will familiarize judges in the Republic of Moldova with the best judicial practices on intellectual property dispute settlement.
Judges will examine several case studies on dispute settlement in the field of copyright and trademarks. Other topics on the agenda: enforcement of intellectual property in the Internet network; proof system on intellectual property infringements; civil remedies: sanctions and penalties; fight against the phenomenon of counterfeiting of products; justification of criminal sanctions and their proportionality under the Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights.
The National Workshop is organized according to the provisions of the Memorandum of Cooperation between the State Agency on Intellectual Property and the National Institute of Justice, signed on April 12, 2013, having as main objective the implementation of the AGEPI-WIPO Joint Action Plan for 2014.