The Minister for Trade and Export Growth, Hon David Parker, has announced that the Comprehensive and Progressive Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement (CPTPP) will enter into force on 30 December 2018. This means that a number of amendments to the Copyright Act 1994, Patents Act 2013 and Trade Marks Act 2002 consistent with the Intellectual Property (IP) Chapters of the CPTPP will enter into force on the same day.

The amendments include the following:

• Updated guidelines on the ability of Customs New Zealand to detain suspected pirated copies or infringing goods that are being imported or exported.
• A detailed outline of performers’ moral rights, with some consideration to performances and sound recordings.
• The adoption of a 12-month grace period during which the disclosure of an invention can be disregarded from the meaning of prior art base.

Please note that the Commencement Order for the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership Amendment Act only brings certain patent provisions into force, namely the grace period for self-disclosure discussed above. The order does not bring into force other patent provisions contained within that Act, such as patent term extension.

See the Minister’s release on the announcement.

For clarity on how these IP Chapter amendments will specifically apply to intellectual property under the above Acts, please visit the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade website.