Abstract
Trademark in modern times has assumed greater significance as a branch of intellectual property law. It guarantees rights over goods and services of a manufacturer as against unfair imitation by other persons. Trademark protection is enforced by the courts, which in most systems have the authority to block trademark infringement. There are various Statutes such as the Copyright Act, 1988, Trademarks Act, 1967 (TA), Patents and Designs Act, 1971 which are enacted to deal with these problems. However, the TA in Nigeria has remained so for over four decades without any amendment or enactment of a new Act despite the rapid changes in trading and consumer practices as well as the local commercial conditions in which trademarks are usually deployed or used. The dissertation examined the legal regime on trademarks in Nigeria, the United States, the United Kingdom and India and the lessons to be drawn from these jurisdictions. The doctrinal research methodology was adopted by considering primary sources of law and secondary sources of law on the topic under consideration. The dissertation found that there are several legal and institutional frameworks on ground in Nigeria relevant to trademarks. However, these laws have number of discrepancies that hampered the adequacy and effective protection of intellectual property rights. Trademark Act in Nigeria had inherent statutory problems in Section 67 based on definition of “trademark‟ itself. The section provides ambiguous definition of “trademark” which is quite confusing. Further Section 14(1)(2) creates confusion in that the dichotomy of registration in Part A and B of the register is uncalled for. The dissertation also found that there are deficiencies in enforcement mechanism of institutional framework, too, for example, lack of unity of command of different agencies, such as copyright inspectors, National Office for Technology Acquisition and Promotion. The ineffectiveness of enforcement systems are commonly attributed to a lack of human resources, funding and practical experience in intellectual property enforcement by relevant officials. The dissertation concluded that the provisions of the trademark law fall short of the modern trends and advancement in technology in the fields of trademarks regime. Therefore, it was recommended that the ambiguity in Section 67 of the Trademark Act be recasted to give clear meaning to the inherent statutory problems. Similarly section 14(1)(2) of the TA relating to option for registration in either Part A or B to be harmonized appropriately. Service marks and consumers‟ rights should be provided in the TA for the benefit of service providers. The fight against infringement of trademarks should be a coordinated one, involving all the relevant stakeholders and dealing with all various intellectual property rights. Such ministries like Trade and Investment, Science and Technology, Justice and other agencies such as Nigerian Copyright Commission, and National Office for Technology Acquisition should all work together. Government at all levels should provide adequate funds for the agencies with the responsibility of administration, promotion, enforcement and prosecution of intellectual property rights to enable them carry out their mandates effectively.
Keywords: Legal, Lessons, Nigeria, Trademarks, Regime