Intellectual Property (IP) bodies and professionals are calling on the Government to provide clarity in relation to the potential impact Brexit might have on IP-driven businesses.
In a new report published earlier this week, the Chartered Institute of Trademark Attorneys (CITMA) has warned that UK IP professionals and businesses could lose as much as £17 million per year if the UK does not remain a member of the European Economic Area (EEA) after Brexit, or if appropriate measures are not undertaken to ensure ‘regulatory alignment’ with the European Union (EU).
It has called for a so-called ‘soft Brexit’ to enable members of CITMA to continue representing clients at the EU Intellectual Property Office (EUIPO) once Britain has formally left the bloc, and to ensure disruption to IP-driven businesses is kept to a minimum.
The group, which represents more than 1,500 IP, design and trade mark professionals across the UK – including solicitors and barristers – has published a comprehensive report entitled Trade marks, designs, business and Brexit, which sets out how this might be achieved.
Specifically, it says that a ‘clear framework’ needs to be put in place to ensure that EU trade mark holders can still be represented by CITMA members going forward.
CITMA President, Kate O’Rourke, said: “The potential loss of rights of representation for CITMAs before the EUIPO has huge risks for businesses in the UK.
“These rights are also valuable to facilitate our vital international commercial and legal relationships with major economies, including the USA and China, that the Government is rightly seeking to encourage.
“Our key message to the Government is an urgent need for clarity,” she said.
The group’s report can be accessed here.