INTA News

INTA Contributes to IP Strategies in Latin America

Published: July 15, 2020

Political changes have occurred in most Latin American countries in the last year, and normally with those changes governments seek to set, reset, or create new strategies and policies to implement their ideas for social and economic development. This is the case in Brazil, Costa Rica, and Colombia, whose new governments have been building and reassessing how to better use intellectual property (IP) rights and the IP system to leverage their innovation and entrepreneurship policies.

During this time, INTA was invited to contribute input into national IP strategies in several countries. The Association’s input and strong advocacy has helped to build INTA into a trusted partner in the region. Efforts included six INTA delegations, headed by INTA CEO Etienne Sanz de Acedo, and dozens of meetings with government officials and heads of IP offices. This includes the signing of a memorandum of understanding with the Brazilian IP Office, which took place in Singapore during a delegation led by 2019 INTA President David Lossignol. Other efforts were the launch and presentation in six countries of the second Latin American‒focused impact study, Trademarks in Latin America: Economic Impact in 10 Latin America and Caribbean Countries. The hope is to be able to present the study to the remaining countries in the region soon.

In January, the Colombian Council of Public-Private Competitiveness invited INTA Latin American Office Chief Representative José Luis Londoño to discuss the country’s future National IP Strategy and to provide input within its building process. A highly skilled and experienced team of our Colombian members in coalition with the Colombian IP Association ACPI, and ASIPI (the Inter-American Association of Intellectual Property) have been working closely for the past month to present the Colombian government a set of recommendations to take into consideration for the National IP Strategy. The three associations are to present the final comments in July when the government is expected to begin the second stage in the process.

Later in January, during an INTA delegation to Costa Rica, Mr. Sanz de Acedo and Marco Palacios (the latter on behalf of ASIPI), presented the impact study findings to the Costa Rican government, including the Ministry of Justice and the Head of the IP Office. As a result, INTA was invited to two days of meetings with the Costa Rican authorities, who were preparing to start the process of drafting their new National IP Strategy.

During those two days, Mr.  Londoño, Mr. Sanz de Acedo, and INTA member Luis Henríquez (representing ASIPI) shared views on the main topics the government should consider when embarking on building a National IP Strategy. Government officials invited INTA and ASIPI to present those experiences and recommendations in a draft. A group of Costa Rican practitioners volunteered to work on the project, and their efforts resulted in the submission of a comprehensive document, received by the Head of the Costa Rican IP Office on June 12.

The document was also shared with Latin American Global Advisory Council (GAC) members for their views and contributions, which were included in the final draft, but also for approval of its structure as the basis for new and upcoming drafts for Colombia and other countries.

Meanwhile, in Brazil, in March and April, INTA was invited to a series of meetings arranged by the government’s consultant hired to draft the first analysis of the Brazilian IP System. INTA was represented by its Latin American GAC member Nathalia Mazzonetto (Mommlaw, Brazil), who put forward the GAC’s recommendations and insights, which were duly noted by the consultant at the end of the meetings.

We wish to thank our Brazilian, Colombian, Costa Rican, and GAC members for these achievements, coming together to prove we are a global community.

The members of the Costa Rican team are Valeria Agüero, Melissa Mora Martín, Néstor Moreira, Alejandro Pacheco Saborio, Giselle Reuben, Fabiola Sáenz Quesada, and Jessica Ward Campos.

The GAC members are Alicia LLoreda, Nathalia Mazzonetto, Graciela Perez de Inzaurraga, Margarita Romero, Virginia Cervieri, Diana Arredondo, Maria José Sánchez, María del Pilar Troncoso, Ignacia Leria Luksic, Mariana Vargas, Luis Alonso, Juan Cichero, and Sergio Barragán.

The members of the Colombian team are Alicia Lloreda, Ana María Castro, Andrés Rincón, Carlos R. Olarte, Claudette Vernot, Fernando Triana, Gerardo Florez, Helena Camargo, Ian Raisbeck, Juan Moure, Lola Kandelaft, and the President of the Colombian IP Association Luz Clemencia Suarez de Paez.

Although every effort has been made to verify the accuracy of this article, readers are urged to check independently on matters of specific concern or interest. Law & Practice updates are published without comment from INTA except where it has taken an official position.

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