Memorandum D19-4-3 Copyright and Trade-Marks has been updated to reflect amendments made to the Copyright Act and the Trade-marks Act. The Act adds new civil and criminal remedies and new border measures to strengthen the enforcement of the copyright and trade-mark rights and to curtail commercial activity involving infringing copies and counterfeit trade-marked goods.
The Combating Counterfeit Products Act, which amended sections of the Copyright Act and the Trade-marks Act, came into force January 1, 2015.
The Act provides for the implementation of new IPR border measures that will allow the CBSA to detain commercial shipments, as per section 101 of the Customs Act, that contain suspected counterfeit and/or pirated goods. It also allows the CBSA to share certain information about those shipments with RH that have filed a Request for Assistance (RFA) with the CBSA to allow them to seek remedy in civil court as per section 107(5)(l.1) and (l.2) of the Customs Act, section 44.04(1) of the Copyright Act, and section 51.06(1) of the Trade-marks Act.
With the exception of a possibility of a court order issued under the Integrated Circuit Topography Act, the CBSA plays a role only with respect to copyright or trade-mark goods; it does not act upon any other IPR infringements such as patents or industrial designs.