Intellectual property rights protection in Ukraine has been strengthened: new tools to combat infringements

On 15 April 2023, a Law No. 2974-IX dated 20.03.2023 "On Amendments to Certain Legislative Acts of Ukraine on Strengthening the Protection of Intellectual Property Rights" came into force in Ukraine, introducing important changes that will allow right holders to more effectively enforce their rights in court.

Such amendments include, in particular:

1. The costs associated with the seizure and destruction of counterfeit or pirated goods, equipment and tools for their manufacture are to be borne by the infringer.
2. Infringement of intellectual property rights through negligence or unintentionally is also a ground for seizure and destruction of counterfeit or pirated goods, equipment and tools for their manufacture, or for recovery of compensation from the infringer in the amount of the licence fee.
3. The publication of information on the intellectual property rights infringement and the content of the court decision on such infringement shall be carried out at the expense of the infringer.
4. The right holder shall have the right to request information on the origin and distribution networks of goods or services that infringe intellectual property rights or in respect of which there are sufficient grounds to believe that the distribution of such goods or provision of such services infringes intellectual property rights.
   
   Such information may be requested from the infringer, importer, seller, manufacturer and any other persons involved in the chain of manufacture and distribution of infringing goods or services.
5. Instead of recovering damages, the right holders now have the right to demand compensation from infringers for intellectual property rights infringement to such IP objects as industrial designs (registered and unregistered), trademarks, inventions, utility models, and semiconductor product layouts.

The compensation shall be not less than the amount of the licence fee and may be determined by the court in a larger amount, depending on the scope of the infringement, the fault of the infringer and other essential circumstances. 

The compensation shall be set in the amount of the licence fee if the infringer can prove that the infringement was unintentional and without negligence.

At your request, our experts of PWC Ukraine will be happy to provide you with advice on all matters related to the protection of intellectual property rights in Ukraine.