The European Parliament and the Council of the European Union passed a new regulation concerning customs enforcement of intellectual property rights (Regulation No. 608/2013) on June 12, 2013, intended to strengthen the current customs protections for intellectual property rights in Europe. The new regulation takes effect on January 1, 2014.
Upon request of the rights holder, European customs agents will have the authority to cease counterfeit and pirated goods, along with any other goods that infringe trademarks, designs, copyrights, geographical indications, patents, supplementary protection certificates for medicinal products, supplementary protection certificates for plant protection products, plant variety rights, semiconductor topographies, and utility models. Any holder of a valid European Union intellectual property right may apply to customs to have goods ceased. Upon seizure, customs will notify the rights holder, who then has the option of (a) releasing the goods, (b) destroying the goods under customs supervision with the consent of either the recipient or the carrier of the goods, without the need for judicial proceedings, or (c) initiate an infringement action. Still under development is a central electronic database, which is targeted for deployment in 2015.
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