News & Insights
Adams & Adams strengthens African footprint with new franchise office in Mauritius
11 September 2024 – Adams & Adams, an internationally recognised and leading African law firm, is proud to announce the opening of a franchise office in Mauritius, marking a significant milestone in the firm’s strategy to enhance its legal service offerings across Africa. “Mauritius is one of Africa’s fastest-growing economies, with a robust legal framework […]
September 11 2024
Rwanda’s New Intellectual Property Legislation
Rwanda published and enacted Law n° 055/2024 of 20/06/2024 on the Protection of Intellectual Property (“the new Act”) on 31 July 2024, repealing Law n° 31/2009 of 26/10/2009. The new Act introduced some notable changes, which are outlined below. Trade Marks Acquired distinctiveness Previously, the Minister or a competent court had to consider whether a […]
September 11 2024
A TIMELY REMINDER FOR EX-EMPLOYERS ON REQUIREMENTS TO BE SATISFIED FOR WITHHOLDING EX-EMPLOYEES PENSION FUND BENEFITS
Introduction: When employees are dismissed or abscond following suspected theft or misappropriation of funds, ex-employers often attempt to recover the lost funds from the ex-employee’s pension benefits. In such cases, time is of the essence, as ex-employees may try to withdraw their pension benefits quickly. To have a chance of recovering the lost monies, an […]
September 10 2024
Adams & Adams visits OAPI Headquarters in Cameroon
Towards the end of September 2024, Adams & Adams Partners, Simon Brown and Nicky Garnett and Africa Practice Manager, Menzi Maboyi, travelled to Cameroon to visit our Associate Office and to hold meetings with the OAPI Director General (DG), Mr Denis Bouhoussou and his team at the OAPI Headquarters in Yaounde.. This was an opportune […]
September 03 2024
Little Wiggle Room: The Power of Payment Certificates in Construction Contracts
The High Court of South Africa, Gauteng Division, Pretoria, was recently called upon to decide on a claim based on interim payment certificates from a building contract between the applicant, a construction company, and the respondent, a shopping centre. Under the building contract, the applicant was contracted to build a shopping centre in Montana, Pretoria. […]
August 30 2024
TRADE MARK OFFICE TO RESUME OPERATIONS FROM 2 SEPTEMBER 2024
The Libyan Trade Mark Office (“TMO”) has been operating at limited capacity and has not been accepting new filings for some time. However, following a recently issued ministerial decree, the TMO will resume operations as of 2 September 2024. From this date, applicants will once again be able to file trade mark applications in Libya. […]
August 21 2024
Liability Insurance: Can A Third-Party Plaintiff Successfully Sue An Insolvent Policyholder?
Introduction Any party that decides to launch legal action does so with the goal of attaining legal recourse. In insurance, specifically, parties typically sue for damages. On the surface, it may seem futile to sue an insolvent person, as the chances of recovering damages are practically non-existent. The question, therefore, becomes whether it is possible […]
August 16 2024
Restraint of Trade Clauses: Balancing Employees' Rights to Work versus Employers' Proprietary Interests
Once regarded as unlawful for being against public policy and therefore unenforceable, restraint of trade clauses are now a common feature in employment contracts. The High Court of South Africa, Gauteng Division, Pretoria, was recently called upon to enforce a restraint of trade agreement between the applicant and the first respondent, its erstwhile employee, as […]
August 15 2024
Stakeholder meeting on the Anti Counterfeit Goods and Services Bill
On 3rd July 2024, a public stakeholder meeting was held over the Anti Counterfeit Bill in Kampala. The Anti Counterfeit Bill, 2023 is a Private Members Bill, that is, introduced by a Member of Parliament of Uganda and not the Government. The meeting was attended by government agencies such as the Uganda Police Force, Uganda […]
August 12 2024
Commercialisation of Plant Breeders’ Rights in the spotlight, as Japanese Kimito apple heads to South African shores.
An apple plant variety (HFF63) developed by Hirosaki University in Japan, and marketed under the name ‘KIMITO’, is to be cultivated in South Africa before the end of 2024. The venture follows an agreement between the university and Japanese food wholesaler and distributor, Wismettac Foods Inc. According to Wismettac Foods’ Mid-Term Business Plan (2024-2026) (https://www.wismettac.com/en/ir/library/plan/main/00/teaserItems1/00/linkList/0/link/MTP_full_E.pdf, […]
August 12 2024
Third-Party Notices: Navigating the Fine Line Between Contractual and Delictual Liability
Often, more than one Defendant is sued for damages that a Plaintiff has sustained, whether jointly or in the alternative. Uniform Rule 13 allows a Defendant to issue a third-party notice against another Defendant where the former believes it is, in law, entitled to a contribution or indemnification from the latter. This scenario unfolded in […]
August 12 2024
The 5th annual All Africa Intellectual Property Rights Summit, 2024
The fifth edition of the All Africa Intellectual Property Rights Summit is to be held in Kigali from 28 to 30 November 2024. The summit is an initiative of the Africa Intellectual Property Centre, an organisation established in 2019 by the International Trade and Research Centre (An independent organisation aimed at providing support and public […]
August 12 2024
Geographical indication registrations for products from member states in line with its 2023-2027 Strategic Plan
The OAPI 2023-2027 Strategic Plan emphasises the organisation’s resolve to prioritise the establishment, development and protection of Geographical Indications for products originating from OAPI member states. Since the adoption of this strategic resolution, there has indeed been a rise in reports of geographical indication (“GI”) registrations granted for several products from OAPI member states. Amongst […]
August 12 2024
China- Egypt Patent Prosecution Highway pilot project extended to 2029
The China and Egypt Patent Prosecution Highway (PPH) pilot project was initiated in 2017 based on a two-year agreement, and at the end of the initial period, in 2019, it was extended for five years to 2024. The bilateral corporation has now again been extended to 30 June 2029. According to the statement that was […]
August 12 2024
ARIPO signs a Memorandum of Understanding with SADC
On 30 July 2024 ARIPO and The Southern African Development Community (SADC) signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) regarding their collaboration on intellectual property matters. This was at the 7th SADC Industrialization Week in Harare, Zimbabwe. SADC is an intergovernmental community organisation, comprising of sixteen member states, namely, Angola; Botswana; Comoros; Democratic Republic of Congo; […]
August 12 2024
ARIPO & CHINA - Fast-tracked patent prosecution expected following the launch of Patent Prosecution Highway Pilot Program
ARIPO and the China National Intellectual Property Administration (CNIPA) have agreed to co-operate on the implementation of a bilateral Patent Prosecution Highway pilot program, which will run for five years, from 8 June 2024 to 7 June 2029. Patent Prosecution Highway (PPH) is a program that functions based on an agreement between jurisdictions, and it […]
August 12 2024
Adams & Adams welcomes Stuart Boyd as new Chief Operating Officer
Pretoria – Adams & Adams, a leading African law firm, is pleased to announce the appointment of Stuart Boyd as chief operating officer (COO), effective 1 August 2024. With a career spanning over 28 years in legal and financial services, Stuart brings extensive experience in strategic management and organisational leadership. He previously served as COO […]
August 01 2024
LIABILITY INSURANCE: WHAT HAPPENS WHEN THE INSURER AND POLICYHOLDER DISAGREE ON SETTLING THE MATTER?
When a liability insurance policyholder is being sued, they refer that legal case to their insurer. If a claim in question falls within the four corners of a policy, the insurer handles the claim on behalf of the policyholder. If the matter goes to court, the court papers cite the policyholder (not the insurer) as […]
July 24 2024