38 | LEXPERT • June 2019 | www.lexpert.ca/usguide
When and if the United
States-Mexico-Canada Agree-
ment (USMCA) is ratified by
all parties, US attorneys and
in-house counsel seeking to
prosecute or enforce their
clients' intellectual property
rights in Canada will notice
its impact immediately.
e agreement, which is yet to be ratified, affects several significant as-
pects of Canadian copyright, patent and trademark law and practice.
In the trademark arena, the USMCA will align the minimum duration
of copyright in Canada (and Mexico) with the "life plus 70 years" term that
currently exists in the US.
Until the USMCA comes into effect, then, the current rules stay in place.
"If the work is being used in Canada, then life +50 applies," says Tara
Parker of Goodmans LLP in Toronto. "If the work is being used in the US,
then we start with life +70."
e USMCA also changes how internet service providers (ISPs) deal
with users' copyright infringement. Here, Canada will keep its "notice and
notice" system under which the ISP forwards to its subscribers any notices
of alleged infringement that it has received from a rights holder.
e USMCA also provides ISPs with a "safe harbor." ISPs who remove
material they know to be infringing and cooperate with copyright owners
to deter illegal storage and transmission of copyrighted materials will be
protected from liability for infringement.
Under the agreement, Canada must also provide protection against
the circumvention of digital locks and watermarks on copyrighted ma-
terial and make those who engage in such behavior subject to civil and
criminal sanctions.
BETWEEN THE USMCA,
THE UPDATED PATENT ACT
AND THE NEWLY WRITTEN
TRADEMARKS ACT,
LOTS HAS CHANGED
BY JULIUS MELNITZER
IP & Media
Understanding
the New IP Laws
PHOTO:
SHUTTERSTOCK
