Contacts

Our Intellectual property practice group is led by Faisal Daudpota, the Senior Partner of our firm. He can be reached at faisal@daudpota.com

Overview

Our lawyers are expert at counseling clients on all aspects of laws relating to intellectual property prosecutions and enforcement in many jurisdictions all across Middle East and South Asia, as well as internationally. We have conducted and managed multiple litigations and instructed counsels in trademark infringement and counterfeiting matters in various countries.

We have managed due diligence, investigation, and enforcement actions (including administrative, civil, criminal and border enforcement actions) in various countries. We have supervised multi-jurisdictional investigation (covering UAE, Jordan, Egypt, Tunisia, Syria, Pakistan, and Iraq) as to trademark infringement. We have advised on strategies pertaining to brand protection, licensing, and trademark prosecution in the UAE to a number of clients.

Our Services

We assist and advise our Intellectual Property Clients with respect to the following:

- Trademarks Prosecution, Trademarks Oppositions, and Trademarks Cancellations
- Anti-counterfeiting and Brand Protection, and Trademarks Litigation
- Domain Name Disputes
- Misleading Advertising
- Copyrights Enforcement/Anti-piracy
- Industrial Designs prosecution and Protection
- Patents Prosecution, and Patents Litigation
- Trade Secrets/Breach of Confidence
- Intellectual Property Counseling, and Portfolio Management
- Due Diligence/IP Audits
- Regional Strategy (Middle East and South Asia)
- Licensing and Franchising

Our Experience

Highlighted below are some of the recent assignments handled by our lawyers:

• Managed complex trademark infringement litigations in the Middle East and South Asia for a number of clients, including: a NASDAQ listed largest global online marketplace platform owning company, a leading real-estate development company in the UAE, a global fruit-juice drinks company out of Germany;
• Managed all due diligence, investigation, and enforcement actions (including administrative, civil, criminal and border enforcement actions) in the UAE for a leading Japanese automobile manufacturer;
• Regularly called upon to advise on problems relating to parallel importation, trademarks clearance, enforcement of judgments thresholds in the UAE to a number of clients, including: a NASDAQ listed company (that provides a diversified range of systems, software, and services that empowers networking technology globally), a leading UK based media group (that specializes in consumer, business and customer magazines, websites, exhibitions and events, in the UK and worldwide), a UAE based investment fund company;
• Regularly called upon to advice on strategies pertaining to brand protection, licensing, and trademark prosecution in the UAE to a number of clients, including: a global workforce development and IT consulting organization, a leading global company that manufactures healthcare and consumer products, a Canadian technology company (that designs, manufactures, deploys, and services remote environmental monitoring equipment);
• Supervised multi-jurisdictional investigation (covering UAE, Jordan, and Iraq) as to trademark infringement on behalf of a leading Japanese company (dealing in electronics, video, communications, video game consoles, and information technology products);
• Representing and opining Pakistan State Oil Ltd. (PSO) in civil and criminal litigation cases relating to franchise agreements, breach of copyright and trademarks, counterfeiting and adulteration of PSO products, and recovery of dues;
• Manage trademark portfolios for a number of clients, including: a leading UAE headquartered luxury goods retailer, a German heavy vehicle parts manufacturer, an international microfinance lending institution, a leading UAE based aromatic skin-care products company, and a leading distributor of alcoholic drinks in the Middle East;
• Represented a UAE based leading Islamic Bank in a contested UDRP case for domain names transfer;
• Advised a leading developer in the UAE as to liability disclaimers for master plan, villa footprint document, elevation document, floor plans, finishes schedule, and marketing brochure pertaining to a major developing project;
• Advised a leading supermarkets franchisee in the UAE as to rights of collection societies in respect of licensing and use of music;
• Advised a leading UAE supermarket chain copyright infringement issues in relation to its outsourced branding contracts;
• Advised a leading UAE government entity as to copyright ownership issues in relation to its outsourced book compilation deals

Publications

‘Pakistan: Stopping Imports of Counterfeit Goods Through Customs Enforcement Actions’
2021 November – (Social Sciences Research Network)

‘Trade War for Trans-Border Basmati Label – an Assessment of Select Legal Issues Before the European Commission’
2021 January – (Social Sciences Research Network)

‘Remedies Against Infringement of IP Rights in Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC)‘
2020 February – (Social Sciences Research Network)

‘Geographical Indications Law of Pakistan – An Overview’
2020 May – (Social Sciences Research Network)

‘Pakistan Must Recognize the Right of Priority of Hague Design Applications … Even Though It Is Not a Party to the Hague Agreement!’
2019 January – (Social Sciences Research Network)

‘Groundless Threats of Trademark Infringement’
2018 May – (WIPR – World Intellectual Property Review)

‘Digital Copyrights Protection in GCC Countries’
2017 October – (Social Sciences Research Network)

‘Pakistan: New Customs Rules On Counterfeits’
2017 May – (WIPR – World Intellectual Property Review)

‘Pakistan – Understanding Its Law on Plant Variety Rights’
2017 April – (Social Sciences Research Network)

‘Saudi Arabia: Rights in Well-Known Marks Recognized When Goods Are Similar Despite Difference in Classes’
2017 March – (March 15, 2017 INTA Bulletin, Vol. 72, No. 5)

‘Saudi Arabia: Court Gives Well-Known Status to Unregistered Trademark’
2016 May – (May 15, 2016 INTA Bulletin, Vol. 71, No. 9)

‘Understanding the Jurisdiction of Pakistan’s Specialized Courts for Intellectual Property Rights Enforcement’
2016 January – (Social Sciences Research Network)

‘Thresholds as to Exhaustion of Trademark Rights in Pakistan’
2015 March – (Social Sciences Research Network)

‘Fundamentals of Pakistan’s Copyright Law’
2013 April – (Social Sciences Research Network)

‘The Past and Present of International Efforts Against Trademark Counterfeiting’
January, 2007, INTA – Special Report “Counterfeiting” [NY, USA]

‘Anticounterfeiting Milestones of the European Union’
January, 2007, INTA – Special Report “Counterfeiting” [NY, USA]

‘Crime in Goods’
2005 – Trademark World, June, p 28 [London, UK]

‘Protection of performers’ rights in Pakistan’
2003 Copyright World, March, p 25 [London, UK]

‘Overview of Law Relating to Industrial designs in Pakistan’
2002 Copyright World, June/July, p 20 [London, UK]

‘Pre-Trial Injunctions in Pakistan’s Patent World’
2002 Patent World, September, p 24 [London, UK]

‘Compilations, Speeches, Wrappers & Assignments: The most important copyright cases from Pakistan’
2002 Copyright World, October, p 20 [London, UK]