What is Intellectual Property?

Intellectual Property is a form of legal entitlement which allows its holder to control the use of certain intangible ideas and expressions. The term intellectual property reflects the idea that once established, such entitlements are generally treated by courts, especially in common law jurisdictions, as if they were tangible property. The most common forms of intellectual property include patents, copyrights, trademarks, and trade secrets. It also entails an entitlement to enforce incorporeal rights in mental creations such as inventions, literary and artistic works, symbols, names, and images used in commercial or social-networking forums.

Intellectual Property is divided into two categories – Industrial Property and Copyright.

Industrial Property

Industrial Property includes Patents for inventions, Trademarks, Industrial Designs and Geographical Indications. A Trademark is a graphic design or emblem used to distinguish the goods or services of a business or professional undertaking from the goods or services of other businesses or professional undertakings. A patent is an exclusive right granted for an invention - a product or process that provides a new way of doing something, or that offers a new technical solution to a problem.

Copyright

The second category of Intellectual Property is Copyright. Copyright is the legal protection granted to the creator of an original literary or artistic work. It covers literary works (such as novels and plays), films, music, artistic works (e.g., drawings, paintings, photographs and sculptures) and architectural design. This is the exclusive right granted to perform, authorize, or prohibit certain acts in relation to the Copyrighted work.

Intellectual Property in Belize

In 2000 Belize joined the World Intellectual Property Organization (www.wipo.org) and signed onto the Patent Cooperation Treaty and has since enacted a comprehensive set of modern TRIPS compliant Intellectual Property registration and protection laws.

All Intellectual Property matters in Belize are dealt with by the Belize Intellectual Property Office (BELIPO) ( www.belipo.bz) which also acts as the National Intellectual Property Registry.