Budget 2015 Improves Canada's Intellectual Property Framework

The Federal Government's 2015 Budget proposes significant improvements in Canada's intellectual property framework, protecting the confidential communications between innovators and their IP advisors from forced disclosure in litigation and providing the Canadian Intellectual Property Office with the ability to extend deadlines in cases of force majeure events. 

Providing a statutory privilege for IP advisor-client communications is consistent with initiatives on this issue taken in many of Canada's most important trading partners and leading innovative economies. With this, Canadian businesses are better assured that they can speak openly with their intellectual property advisors in order to obtain the best possible advice, knowing that these conversations will not be revealed to their competitors through a court process or litigation. Protecting such confidential communications will allow Canadian businesses to be more competitive inCanada and overseas, driving economic growth and creating jobs for Canadians.

Allowing the Canadian Intellectual Property Office the ability to extend deadlines in cases of force majeure events will help avoid unintentional loss of IP rights where, for example, floods or ice storms prevent the timely filing of documents with the Office.

The Intellectual Property Institute of Canada (IPIC) would like to thank the Government of Canada and the many public officials, particularly The Hon. James Moore, Minister of Industry, for all their support.

IPIC is the professional association of trademark agents, patent agents and lawyers practicing in all areas of intellectual property law. Our membership totals over 1,700 individuals, consisting of practitioners in law firms and agencies of all sizes, sole practitioners, in-house corporate intellectual property professionals, government personnel, and academics. Our members' clients include virtually all Canadian businesses, universities and other institutions that have an interest in intellectual property in Canada or elsewhere, and also foreign companies who hold intellectual property rights in Canada.