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Coordination of the Enforcement of Intellectual Property Rights in the Republic of Croatia

In order to improve efficiency of the enforcement system of intellectual property rights, a permanent mechanism of coordinating enforcement tasks and activities of intellectual property rights has been established in the Republic of Croatia in the course of 2010, based on the National Strategy for the Development of the Intellectual Property System of the Republic of Croatia for the period 2010 – 2012. The concerned coordination model operates on several levels, through permanent coordination bodies and coordination subgroups, and ad hoc working groups to provide support to individual professional activities.

The establishment of coordination bodies has enabled better cooperation between all the bodies competent for the enforcement of legal protection of intellectual property rights in the Republic of Croatia and other institutions involved in the protection system, as well as the users of the protection system (right holders).

Steering Committee for the Enforcement of Intellectual Property Rights

Steering Committee for the Enforcement of Intellectual Property Rights is the highest managing (strategic) level of coordinating all tasks and activities at preventing and fighting the infringements of intellectual property rights in the Republic of Croatia, consisting of state officials from competent state administration bodies. On the basis of regular reports of the Coordination Board for the Enforcement of Intellectual Property Rights, statistical reports on the infringements of intellectual property rights and other collected data, the Steering Committee monitors the enforcement of intellectual property rights in the Republic of Croatia. Pursuant to the work tasks set, the Steering Committee for the Enforcement of Intellectual Property Rights is liable for the implementation of the National Strategy for the Development of the Intellectual Property System of the Republic of Croatia and the Action Plan in the part of the enforcement of intellectual property rights.

Coordination Board for the Enforcement of Intellectual Property Rights

Coordination Board for the Enforcement of Intellectual Property Rights (abbr. KOPPPIV) is a managing (tactical) level of coordinating all tasks and activities at preventing and fighting the infringements of intellectual property rights, consisting of managing state officials from state administration bodies competent for the enforcement of intellectual property rights, other bodies governed by public law also competent for certain issues in the field of intellectual property protection and a representative of the State Attorney’s Office. KOPPPIV monitors the situation in the field of the enforcement of intellectual property rights in the Republic of Croatia, analyses statistical reports on the infringements of intellectual property rights, monitors the development of legislation in this legal area, undertakes activities to raise public awareness of the importance of the protection of intellectual property rights, receives and analyses reports by coordination subgroups and working groups that operate according to the concerned model, provides reports to the Steering Committee for the Enforcement of Intellectual Property Rights on the situation in the field of the enforcement of rights and cooperates with competent bodies and organisations on the international level.

Joint Operation Group for the Enforcement of Intellectual Property Rights

Joint Operation Group for the Enforcement of Intellectual Property Rights is the operational level of coordinating tasks and activities at preventing and fighting the infringements of intellectual property rights, operating at a corresponding regional and interdepartmental structure, with a participation of the officials of the Ministry of the Interior, of the Customs Administration and of the State Attorney’s Office.

Group for Cooperation with Intellectual Property Rights Holders

The Group for Cooperation with Intellectual Property Rights Holders (abbr. SSNOPIV) involves representatives of the bodies competent for the enforcement of intellectual property rights, representatives of the associations of intellectual property rights holders, representatives of individual branches of industries potentially endangered by the infringements of intellectual property rights and representatives of consumer associations. This coordination subgroup aims at cooperating on the development of an efficient system of the enforcement of intellectual property rights that will optimally fulfil its social role in the protection of intellectual property rights and the protection of consumers. The cooperation within SSNOPIV provides for regular exchange of information on the current situation, the most recent initiatives and activities in the field of the enforcement of intellectual property rights, both in the Republic of Croatia and on the international level, and for the possibility of the rights holders and other participants in the system to make direct proposals on how to improve the enforcement system of the rights.

Working Groups

In order to provide professional support to individual activities, the Coordination Board for the Enforcement of Intellectual Property Rights establishes ad hoc working groups. The following working groups have been established and operate actively so far:

1) Working Group for Statistics of the Enforcement of Intellectual Property Rights

The Working Group for Statistics of the Enforcement of Intellectual Property Rights deals with the development of methodology of collecting and analysing statistical data on the infringements of intellectual property rights. The primary task of the Working Group is to improve the methodology of preparing regular statistical reports on the infringements of intellectual property rights in the Republic of Croatia, established for the needs of monitoring the efficiency of the law enforcement system. Reports are prepared by the State Intellectual Property Office, based on collecting and processing statistical data on the proceedings brought due to the infringements of intellectual property rights, monitored by individual bodies competent for the enforcement of intellectual property rights: the State Attorney’s Office, the Ministry of the Interior, the Ministry of Justice and the Customs Administration of the Ministry of Finance. The Working Group for Statistics is consisted of representatives of the mentioned institutions competent for the enforcement of intellectual property rights and representatives of the State Intellectual Property Office and the Croatian Bureau for Statistics. In addition to improving the present methodology of collecting statistical data and other issues important to prepare the reports, the Working Group deals with other issues in relation to the improvement of statistical monitoring of the infringements of intellectual property rights, and it monitors and analyses statistical data from other available sources.

2) Working Group for Raising Public Awareness of the Importance of Respecting Intellectual Property Rights

A corresponding working group has been established also as a professional support to the coordination bodies in the activities of raising the level of public awareness of the enforcement of intellectual property rights. Representatives of the bodies competent for the enforcement of intellectual property rights and other bodies involved in the protection system, representatives of the associations of intellectual property rights holders and representatives of consumer associations participate in this working group. The goals of the operation of this working group are: raising the level of public awareness and the degree of citizens’ understanding of the intellectual property protection system, the importance of respecting intellectual property rights, possible hazards and negative effect of counterfeit goods on the health and safety of citizens, negative economic consequences of the trade in counterfeit and pirated goods, as well as introducing economic entities with the operation of the enforcement system of intellectual property rights and with individual roles of institutions involved in the enforcement of intellectual property rights on the national level.

3) Working Group for Monitoring Normative Activities and Law Enforcement

Considering the scope of the field comprising the protection and the enforcement of intellectual property rights, it has been found necessary to permanently monitor the development of legislation making a legal framework for proceeding of the competent bodies, as well as to monitor the development of legislation on the European and the international level. Representatives of the bodies competent for the enforcement of intellectual property rights and other bodies involved in the protection system and representatives of the associations of intellectual property rights holders participate in this working group; at the same time, the group is a forum to examine problems that might arise in legal practice related to the application or interpretation of regulations. Within its activities, the working group can prepare documents or proposals to amend relevant regulations as applied in this protection area, should it find such initiative necessary, following the conclusions from its meetings.

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