"Negotiation of an Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement continued
in Washington, D.C. July 29-31. Participants in the negotiation included
Australia, Canada, the European Union (represented by the European Commission
and Member States, including the EU Presidency (France)), Japan, Korea, Mexico,
Morocco, New Zealand, Singapore, Switzerland, and the United States.
"The participants welcomed the statement in the July 2008 G8
Hokkaido Toyako Summit Declaration on the World Economy that G8 members support
"the acceleration of negotiations to establish a new international legal
framework, the Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement (ACTA), and seek to complete
the negotiation by the end of this year." Participants reaffirmed their goal to
combat global infringements of intellectual property rights (IPR), particularly
in the context of counterfeiting and piracy, by increasing international
cooperation, strengthening the framework of practices that contribute to
effective enforcement, and strengthening relevant IPR enforcement measures
themselves.
"The July 29-31 meeting was the latest in a series of meetings
to develop different aspects of the proposed agreement. The discussion at this
meeting focused on civil remedies for infringements of intellectual property
rights, including such issues as availability of preliminary measures,
preservation of evidence, damages, and legal fees and costs. Participants also
continued their previous discussions of border enforcement of intellectual
property rights.
"Participants agreed to continue consulting with stakeholders
through domestic processes, share the results of these consultations at their
next meeting, and to continue exploring opportunities for stakeholder
consultations in connection with future ACTA meetings.
"The participants made steady progress in these discussions, and
agreed to continue their work at another substantive meeting to be held at a
mutually convenient time in the near future."
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