Romanian Judges Visit WIPO
Geneva, October 27, 2005
Press Releases PR/2005/428
A delegation of judges from the Romanian Supreme Court and Court of Appeal visited the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) this week as part of a three-part Colloquium organized by WIPO, the European Patent Academy in Munich and the Swiss Federal Institute of Intellectual Property in Berne from October 17 to 28, 2005. The Colloquium which involved visits to all three participating organizations, is an opportunity for judges to enhance their knowledge of recent international developments in the protection of intellectual property rights and to deepen their practical knowledge and expertise in handling intellectual property cases.
Dr. Kamil Idris, WIPO Director General, commenting on the visit, applauded the Romanian Government's commitment to the effective and strategic use of the intellectual property system to promote economic development in that country and reaffirmed WIPO's continued support of Romania in the field of intellectual property. He further underlined the importance for all countries of underpinning their intellectual property systems with effective enforcement mechanisms. This, he said, was a key factor in combating the global problems of counterfeiting and piracy which undermined the efforts of countries to promote economic growth.
Opening the Geneva segment of the Colloquium from October 24 to 27, 2005 which brought together eight senior judges from the Romanian Supreme Court and Court of Appeal , Mr. Wolfgang Starein, Director of WIPO's Enforcement and Special Projects Division said, "As countries are making strides towards economic development, it is essential to be well equipped for the protection of intellectual property rights, consumer protection and that of the entire economy against increasingly sophisticated counterfeiting and piracy. It is well established that a sound intellectual property regime with effective enforcement mechanisms contribute to encouraging local and foreign investments," he added. Mr. Starein also highlighted the decisive role played by the judiciary in intellectual property enforcement and in combating counterfeiting and piracy, particularly in terms of providing a clear orientation in and by court decisions based on well-developed and structured criteria.
Ambassador Doru Romulus Costea, Permanent Representative of Romania to the United Nations in Geneva, said that the colloquium, the second of its kind, was part of the important process of reforming and upgrading the Romanian judicial system. He said that the Romanian authorities were paying increasing attention to improving the environment for intellectual property protection in his country and that having implemented a national intellectual property strategy and adopted specific laws, enforcement was a natural priority. He said "implementation will contribute to the strengthening of the relationship between Intellectual Property and development and to meeting EU integration criteria in this respect." Ambassador Costea noted that WIPO's cooperation with Romania was "dynamic and growing" and thanked WIPO for co-organizing the colloquium.
During their visit to WIPO, the delegation of judges was briefed on WIPO's overall mandate and functions, international developments in the field of intellectual property, technical cooperation activities particularly with countries that are moving towards market reform, and work in the areas of legislative reform, arbitration and mediation, and the Internet domain name process. They also heard presentations and exchanged views on a range of issues relating to intellectual property rights and their enforcement. In today's information and knowledge-driven societies, the intellectual property system has a key role to play in converting knowledge and information into tangible economic assets. This has highlighted the need to address questions relating to enforcement and protection of intellectual property rights.
For further information, please contact the Media Relations and Public Affairs Section at WIPO:
- Tel: (+41 22) - 338 81 61 or 338 95 47
- Fax: (+41 22) - 338 88 10
- Email: publicinf@wipo.int.