WIPO Judicial Institute Celebrates the Twentieth Edition of the Regional Seminar on Intellectual Property for Judges of Latin America

The World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) Judicial Institute collaborated with the Spanish Patent and Trademarks Office, O.A. (OEPM) and the Spanish Agency for International Cooperation and Development (AECID) to organize the twentieth edition of the Regional Seminar on Intellectual Property (IP) for Judges of Latin America from June 10 to 14, 2024. This is a longstanding Regional Seminar that has built a network of more than 300 judicial officers from the region.

Held in Montevideo, Uruguay, the event provided Latin American judges with a forum to exchange practices and experiences from the region and Spain in the adjudication of IP disputes, building their judicial capacities in relevant IP matters.

The Regional Seminar featured the contributions and expertise of an eminent group of speakers from Spain, the Latin American region and beyond. Speakers included judges and experts from the Court of Justice of the Andean Community, the European Union Intellectual Property Office, Mexico, Spain, and Uruguay. Judges from Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Cuba, the Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico, Panama, Paraguay, and Uruguay, participated in this regional exchange.

The program explored a broad range of crucial topics in IP adjudication for the region, including Latin American jurisprudence on various IP rights; the intersection between trademarks and geographical indications; copyright and related rights in the digital environment; patents and utility models; industrial designs; civil procedural aspects; IP specialized judiciaries and mediation and arbitration in IP disputes.

The Regional Seminar forms part of WIPO’s work to support judiciaries in their vital role of ensuring that IP, innovation, and creative ecosystems are balanced and effective. This activity takes place within the framework of the agreement signed between WIPO and the Spanish Government for the Latin American Region Development and the Spanish Government Fund in Trust (FIT/Spain). It is jointly organized by WIPO, OEPM, and AECID on a regular basis.