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CCCA61_052.qxd:CCCA_V1No2_Col-News-V1.qxd 02/07/2008 06:50 PM Page 52 CCCA News The CCCA’s Sister Organizations interests, improve and promote the proficiency arm’s length. This kind of cooperation The Australian Corporate Lawyers Assoc- and competency of its members, and provide agreement is an excellent way to make our iation was founded in 1991. It has over 3,000 networking opportunities. members aware of very important develop- members and six divisions based on state and ments around the world.” territory boundaries. After receiving government approval to serve as an association, the Malaysian Corporate Alison Arnot is a writer based in Ottawa. The Corporate Lawyers Association of New Counsel Association held its inaugural gener- Zealand was established in 1987 to meet the al meeting in February 2007. It currently has CCCA 2008 Conferences needs of corporate and government lawyers 100 members. April 13 — 15, 2008 through, for example, information-sharing and NATIONAL SPRING CONFERENCE networking. Approximately 1,800 of the nearly Potential alliances Hilton Toronto Hotel,Toronto 9,000 lawyers in New Zealand qualify as The CCCA is also working on other internation- Co-chairs: Jacqueline P. Famulak CLANZ members. al alliances. In 2003, it signed a cooperation Regional Legal Counsel, Canada, Latin agreement with the Asociacion Nacional de America & Caribbean,Apple Canada Inc. The Hong Kong Corporate Counsel Associa- Abogados de Empresa in Mexico. As well, it is Barry Michael Fisher tion was established in March 2003 to starting outreach to three European associa- Vice-President, General Counsel and provide a forum for in-house counsel to net- tions — the European Corporate Lawyers Corporate Secretary, SAP Canada Inc. work and share educational opportunities. It Association, which is an umbrella group of has 350 members. national associations based in Brussels, the August 17 — 19, 2008 Paris-based Le Cercle Montesquieu, a group 20TH ANNUAL MEETING The Corporate Lawyers Association of South of prominent French general counsel; and Hilton Quebec Hotel,Quebec City Africa was formed in 1982 and currently has the Association Francaise des Juristes For more information, visit www.cancorpcounsel.org 340 members. It aims to promote common d'Entreprises (AFJE), also based in Paris. Cover Story continued from page 26 trade spoke about intellectual property protection in China. patent lawyers to alert her to potential IP infringement.All poten- “One interesting point she made is that in recent years,the laws tial infringement has to be investigated, and it’s costly. protecting intellectual property in China have developed quite a If a company spends money to register and protect IP assets, bit, so that they are certainly in accordance with international but then does nothing to maintain its exclusivity, it has achieved standards of intellectual property rights recognition; it’s all a ques- nothing,Mercier insists.“Because after five years,someone will be tion of actually getting enforcement.Whereas in the past it would able to contest your exclusivity rights, saying,‘Look, you are no be western companies that would be concerned about the misuse longer the only one using the Bell mark, because there are 15 of their IP,in recent years there have been more successful Chinese other companies using the Bell mark for similar products or serv- companies developing their own unique IP that have run into the ices other than you,so you are no longer exclusive.’It’s important same problem.” to register your IP rights, but it’s even more important after that In the long-term, there’s a good possibility that patents will to police, to defend and to assert your rights.” become easier to enforce in China, Lew says. “Even five years Despite the proliferation of intellectual property misappropria- ago, there was much less enforcement of patents and IP. But now tion around the world, the situation is actually improving in some we’re starting to see some cases being decided, and sometimes areas. The USTR’s 2007 report listed several positive develop- the patent owners are Chinese companies.” ments, including the removal from its watch list of Bahamas, He sees it as a very positive sign that Chinese patent holders Bulgaria, Croatia, Latvia and the European Union, due to are starting to sue for infringement.“Because once local compa- improved intellectual property rights protection and enforcement. nies have IP and then have a vested interest in seeing it enforced, And the situation may be looking up for IP protection in then that bodes well for everybody.” China as well. Chang recalls a Beijing conference he attended a couple of years ago, during which the Chinese vice- minister of Ann Macaulay is a Toronto writer. 52 CCCA Canadian Corporate Counsel Association SPRING 2008