FAKE T-SHIRTS PROMPT RARE IPR CONVICTION IN COSTA RICA

UNCLAS SAN JOSE 002188



SIPDIS



SIPDIS



E.O. 12958: N/A

TAGS: ETRD, EINV, ECIN, CS



SUBJ: Fake T-Shirts Prompt Rare IPR Conviction in Costa Rica





1. In a rare example of intellectual property rights enforcement,

Costa Rican judicial officials recently convicted a Costa Rican

citizen for distributing trademark counterfeit goods. The woman who

was found distributing counterfeit garments with the trademarks

"Quiksilver" and "Roxy", was sentenced to a one-year prison term.

Because it was her first conviction under Costa Rican criminal

procedure the jail sentence was suspended, however, it will appear

on her records.



2. The attorney representing Quiksilver and Roxy told Econoff that

although there have been some convictions in copyright cases, this

conviction for trademark counterfeiting is one of the first to

succeed in Costa Rican courts. The local media has not reported on

this unusual counterfeiting case despite the company's attempts to

generate publicity that could act as a deterrent.



3. Strengthened IPR enforcement is required by the U.S.-Central

America-Dominican Republic Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA-DR). Once it

ratifies the treaty, Costa Rica's legislative assembly must also

bring the country's national IPR laws into conformity with CAFTA-DR.

However, it may take more than a strengthened legal regime to

improve IPR enforcement. The nation's Attorney General has stated

that with limited resources in his office, he does not view

enforcement of intellectual property rights as a high priority

issue.