New Trademarks Law

As the importance of worldwide protection of intellectual property gains greater recognition in everyday discourse as the Western world moves into what many have referred to as a "post-industrialist" age, the British Virgin Islands has seen a great upswing in the registration of trademarks as companies position to seek global protection of these valuable rights. This is hardly surprising given the well established position of the British Virgin Islands as a major corporate domicile. However, the process of establishing protection in intellectual property has been hampered by the great antiquity of trademark law in this British Overseas Territory. This may soon change as a draft Trade Marks Act is presently being considered by legislative draftsmen which would replace the existing law that dates back to 1887.

The new law will be based on the United Kingdom Trade Marks Act and will provide for the registration of service marks, certification marks and collective marks, where these could not be registered as such before. This is particularly important as in the post-industrial age protection of marks and logos connected with services are gaining importance relative to the protection traditionally covering goods.

Harmonization of British Virgin Islands law and practice with international standards is vital if potential registrants of rights in intellectual property are to place confidence in the protection afforded by a British Virgin Islands registration. In this regard, the adoption of the International Classification System to replace the old domestic classification will doubtlessly prove beneficial. The innovations referred to, plus streamlined registration, opposition and renewal processes will bring the British Virgin Islands closer to the forefront of intellectual property practice and will likely provide impetus for greater integration in this key area of international law and commerce.