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Corporate Affairs and Intellectual Property Office

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The Corporate Affairs and Intellectual Property Office (CAIPO)[1][2] is a Barbadian governmental agency in charge of various aspects of industrial property right affairs including: patents, trademarks, and industrial designs.[3] It is a division of the Ministry of Industry, Innovation, Science & Technology (MIST), formerly known as the Ministry of Industry & International Business.[4] Around 2010 Barbados was recognised for its ranking as one of the top countries where foreign patents are legally based.[5] CAIPO's office was located on Belmont Road, and moved in March 2013 to Baobab Towers, in Warrens, Saint Michael.[1]

In 2021 the body opened its corporate registry for online registration.[2]

Criticisms

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In 2021 CAIPO faced criticism by some members of the public for the pace the body conducts its business.[6]

National legislation

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Corporate affairs in Barbados are covered by the following Acts:[7]

  • Companies Act
  • Registration of Business Names Act
  • Bills of Sale Act
  • Small Business Development Act
  • Notarial acts
  • Public Documents Act
  • Pharmacy Act
  • Limited Partnerships Act
  • Registration of Newspapers Act
  • Trade Unions Act

Intellectual property in Barbados are covered by the following Acts:

  • Trademarks Act[8]
  • Patents Act[9]
  • Industrial Designs Act[10]

At the international level, the department works very closely with the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) and its subregional unit known as the Cooperation for Development Bureau for Latin American and Caribbean.

Treaties and conventions

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Barbados is a signatory to the following copyright and intellectual property treaties and conventions influencing local laws:

Treaty or Convention Year it was established Locally ratified into law
Berne Convention for the Protection of Literary and Artistic Works, 1886 ratified: 30 July 1983[11]
Geneva Convention for the Producers of Phonograms Against Unauthorized Duplication 1971 ratified: July 29, 1983[12]
Hague Convention Abolishing the Requirement of Legalisation for Foreign Public Documents - (the Convention Abolishing the Requirement of Legalisation for Foreign Public Documents) 1961 Succession for Barbados 30 November 1966. Barbados maintains that since the United Kingdom entered into the agreement on 24 February 1965 that it is compulsory for Barbados which didn't become independent until 1966.[13]
Nice Agreement concerning the International Classification of Goods and Services for the Purposes of Registration of Marks 1967 ratified: 12 March 1985[14]
Nairobi Treaty (Olympic Symbol) ratified: 28 February 1986[15]
Paris Convention for the Protection of Industrial Property 1883 (as revised in 1967) ratified: 12 March 1985[16]
Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT) 1970 ratified: 12 March 1985[17]
Rome Convention for the Protection of Performers, Producers of Phonograms and Broadcasting Organisations 1961 ratified: 18 September 1983[18]
Universal Copyright Convention (UCC-Geneva) 1952 ascension: 3 March 1983[19]
Universal Copyright Convention (UCC-Paris) (as revised in 1971) ascension: 3 March 1983[20]
Membership to the WIPO[21]
WTO-TRIPS Agreement on the Trade Related Aspects of Intellectual Property 1994 ratified: 1 January 1995

Currently Barbados has yet to finalise or is absent from:

Treaty or Convention Year it was established Note
Brussels Convention Relating to the Distribution of Programme–Carrying Signals Transmitted by Satellite 1974 Some provisions within the United States–Caribbean Basin Initiative already have recourse for United States-based satellite providers to be compensated through other means within that act.
Budapest Treaty on the International Recognition of the Deposit of Microorganisms for the Purposes of Patent Procedure (Budapest) 1977
Patent Law Treaty (PLT) 2000
WIPO Copyright Treaty (WCT) 1996
WIPO Performances and Phonograms Treaty (WPPT) 1996

Domain names and trademarks

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Additionally, CAIPO is entrusted with the handling of legal issues pertaining to Barbados' .bb ccTLD and second-level domains including: .co.bb, .com.bb, .net.bb, .org.bb, .info.bb, .store.bb, .tv.bb, .biz.bb .

See also

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References

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  1. ^ Staff writer (2024). "Country Profiles Contact Information: Barbados". www.wipo.int. World Intellectual Property Org. (WIPO). Retrieved 3 February 2025.
  2. ^ Staff writer (2024). "Departments: Corporate Affairs and Intellectual Property Office". www.gov.bb. Government of Barbados. Retrieved 3 February 2025.
  3. ^ Staff writer (2024). "Corporate Affairs and Intellectual Property Office". www.opencorporates.com. OpenCorporates : The Open Database Of The Corporate World. Retrieved 1 February 2025.
  4. ^ Staff writer (2024). "State bodies: Corporate Affairs and Intellectual Property Office". www.gov.bb. Government of Barbados. Retrieved 3 February 2025.
  5. ^ Staff writer (30 September 2010). "Innovation in Asia: Trading places - China is about to overtake Japan in patent applications". The Economist. Retrieved 11 January 2011. The countries where the greatest number of foreign patents are legally based are Barbados, Luxembourg, Liechtenstein and Ireland, notes the OECD.
  6. ^ Drakes, Sen. Crystal (19 August 2021). T., J.R. (ed.). "Evaluation needed on CAIPO". The Barbados Advocate newspaper. Retrieved 3 February 2025.
  7. ^ "IP National Intellectual Property legislation in Barbados" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2008-12-09. Retrieved 2009-08-18.
  8. ^ "Trade Marks Act, Chapter 319 (Act 1981-56, as amended up to Act 2006-2), Barbados". WIPO Lex. WIPO. Retrieved 2025-05-27.
  9. ^ "Patent Act". WIPO Lex. WIPO. Retrieved 2025-05-27.
  10. ^ "Industrial Designs Act, Chapter 309A (Act 1981-57, amended up to Act 2006-2), Barbados". WIPO Lex. WIPO. Retrieved 2025-05-27.
  11. ^ Berne Convention
  12. ^ "Protection of Producers of Phonograms Against Unauthorized Duplication of Their Phonograms. Contracting parties". WIPO Lex. WIPO. Retrieved 2025-05-27.
  13. ^ Hague Convention Abolishing the Requirement of Legalisation for Foreign Public Documents: Signed 24 February 1965 by the United Kingdom
  14. ^ "Nice Agreement concerning the International Classification of Goods and Services for the Purposes of Registration of Marks, 1967. Contracting Parties/Signatories. Barbados". WIPO Lex. WIPO. Retrieved 2025-05-27.
  15. ^ "Nairobi Treaty. Contracting Parties/Signatories". WIPO Lex. WIPO. Retrieved 2025-05-27.
  16. ^ "Paris Treaty. Contracting Parties/Signatories. Barbados". WIPO Lex. WIPO. Retrieved 2025-05-27.
  17. ^ PCT Treaty
  18. ^ "Rome Convention for the Protection of Performers, Producers of Phonograms and Broadcasting Organisations. Contracting Parties/Signatories". WIPO Lex. WIPO. Retrieved 2025-05-27.
  19. ^ Universal Copyright Convention, with Appendix Declaration relating to Article XVII and Resolution concerning Article XI. Geneva, 6 September 1952
  20. ^ Universal Copyright Convention, as revised on 24 July 1971
  21. ^ "WIPO. Country profile. Barbados". WIPO. Retrieved 2025-05-27.
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