Without Notice Injunctions in Dubai

Part 25.1 of The Rules of the Dubai International Financial Centre Courts 2011("RDC 2011") confer wide powers on the Dubai International Financial Centre ("DIFC") courts to make "without notice" orders including search and freezing order.

A "without notice" order is an order that has been made in the absence of the person against whom it is made ("the respondent"). Such orders are made either because a matter is so urgent that the person seeking the order ("the applicant") has insufficient time to serve the respondent or because there is a danger that the respondent will frustrate justice by for example hiding or destroying evidence or removing from the court's reach or dissipating assets that could otherwise have been used to satisfy a judgment if he or she learns about them. A "search order" is a "without notice" order "requiring a party to admit another party to premises for the purpose of preserving evidence" (RDC 2011 25.1 (8)). A model search order is at Schedule B to RDC 2011 Part 25. A "freezing order" is a "without notice" order

"(a)  restraining a party from removing from the jurisdiction assets located there; or
(b)  restraining a party from dealing with any assets whether located within the jurisdiction or not."

A model of such an order is at Schedule A.   The rules and practice relating to without notice orders set out in RDCC 2011 Part 25 are based on the provisions of Part 25 of the English Civil Procedure Rules and the Part 25A Practice Direction. The model orders in Sched A and B are adapted from the model orders in the Annex to PD25A.

A search order and freezing order were made by Sir John Chadwick in GFH Capital Ltd v Haigh on 3 June 2014 and sealed on the 12th. The parties were due to return to court on the 17th June 2014 ("the return day"). I have not yet been able to ascertain what happened on the return day.

To be served with one of those orders - particularly a "search order" - is an alarming experience and one that is likely to unsettle respondents. Yet respondents have to make important decisions within a very short time. To assist parties who have been served with such orders in England I have written a step by step guide on
"What to do if you are served with a Freezing Injunction or Search Order" (20 July 2014 JD Supra). Most of the advice set out in the guide applies to Dubai as it does to England. However, legal advice and representation should be sought from one of the law firms in Part I of the Register of Practitioners of the DIFC Courts.

Should anybody wish to discuss this article or any other topic he or she can contact me on +44 (0)20 7404 5252 during normal business hours or send me a message through my contact form. He or she can also send me a tweet, write on my wall or contact me through G+, Linkedin or Xing.

Information in English on Saudi Patent Law

Because of the massive and rapidly increasing importance of Asia to the world economy the European Patent Office offers a range of Asian patent information services some of which are chargeable and others of which are free. Among the free services are virtual helpdesks on a number of countries including Saudi Arabia.

The Saudi virtual helpdesk consists of a series of FAQs.  Visitors who fail to find a solution to their problems among the FAQs are invited to complete an enquiry form. Those who want more specific answers to an FAQ are invited to email the International Legal Affairs team at the EPO.  Before reading the FAQs it is perhaps worth reading my articles:  "Patents: Gulf Co-operation Council" 23 Jan 2011 and "Saudi Arabia: Overview of Intellectual Property Law" 22 May 2011.  It will be recalled that patents can be granted either for Saudi Arabia alone by the Saudi Patent Office which is in the King Abdulaziz City for Science and Technology or for all the Gulf Co-operation Council states including Saudi Arabia by the GCC Patent Office. The EPO helpdesk provides information on patents granted by the Saudi Patent Office.

The EPO's FAQs are quire comprehensive. Here are some of the bits of information that I learned from the FAQs:-

"Computer programs as such are not patentable, but may be protected by copyright. Computer-related inventions may be patentable in Saudi Arabia if the requirements for patentability are met."

"All non-residents wishing to apply for a patent require an authorised Saudi Arabian representative. Applicants have to file a power of attorney which has been duly notarised and legalised by the consulate of Saudi Arabia."

"It is not possible at present to file a provisional application in order to get an early filing date in Saudi Arabia."

"It is not possible to submit third-party observations."

"The Saudi Arabian Patent Law does not include any provisions on patent term extensions or supplementary protection certificates (SPCs).

"Within 90 days from publication of the decision to grant, any interested party may apply for partial or total revocation of the patent.

Invalidation is possible for a third party at any time after grant and must be raised before a separate governmental body (Appeals Committee)."

The Saudi Patent Office also publishes FAQs on intellectual property, patents, industrial designs, plant varieties and integrated circuits and statistics on patents, designs and plant varieties.

Should anybody wish to discuss this article or any other topic he or she can contact me on +44 (0)20 7404 5252 during normal business hours or send me a message through my contact form. He or she can also send me a tweet, write on my wall or contact me through G+, Linkedin or Xing.

Saudi Arabia - Riyadh Workshop to train Advisers to Saudi SME on Effective Intellectual Asset Management

Between the 16 and 18 Sept 2014 a training workshop will take place in Riyadh on effective intellectual asset management for small and medium enterprises ("SME"). It will be organized by the World Intellectual Property Organization (the UN specialist agency for intellectual property ("IP")) in conjunction with the Standing Committee on Intellectual Property of the Ministry of Commerce and Industry of Saudi Arabia,

The importance of IP to SME is explained on the front page of the WIPO portal on SME:

"Regardless of what product your enterprise makes or what service it provides, it is likely that it is regularly using and creating a great deal of intellectual property. This being the case, you should systematically consider the steps required for protecting, managing and enforcing it, so as to get the best possible commercial results from its ownership. If you are using intellectual property that belongs to others, then you should consider buying it or acquiring the rights to use it by taking a license in order to avoid a dispute and consequent expensive litigation.

Almost every SME has a trade name or one or more trademarks and should consider protecting them. Most SMEs will have valuable confidential business information, from customers' lists to sales tactics that they may wish to protect. A large number would have developed creative original designs. Many would have produced, or assisted in the publication, dissemination or retailing of a copyrighted work. Some may have invented or improved a product or service.
In all such cases, your SME should consider how best to use the IP system to its own benefit. Remember that IP may assist your SME in almost every aspect of your business development and competitive strategy: from product development to product design, from service delivery to marketing, and from raising financial resources to exporting or expanding your business abroad through licensing or franchising."

The development of an understanding of IP by Saudi SME will be vital for the growth and diversification of the economy of that country. The object of the workshop is to train those who will train Saudi businesses in effective intellectual asset management.

The course will be delivered in English and a provisional programme has already been published which may be downloaded from the WIPO website.  After an introduction to WIPO by Siyoung Park of WIPO's SME section and an overview of IP and the role of effective intellectual asset management in enhancing SME competitiveness there will be talks on trade marks, designs, patents and utility models, copyright and confidentiality by Prof. Al-Khoury of La Sagesse University in Lebanon, Prof Damodaran of the Indian Institute of Management and Mr Park on the 16 Sept.  The next day there will be discussions and exercises on shaping IP strategy, IP in the digital economy and in international business, licensing and other matters. The speakers will be joined by the chair of the Standing Committee on IP who will outline IP Law and administration and IP support services for SMEs in Saudi Arabia.  On the last day there will be talks on accounting and valuation of intellectual assets, IP audits and due diligence and an overview of the role of SME in the Saudi economy by a speaker to be arranged.  After round table discussions which will include a view of IP support in Brunei there will be a short open book written test for the participants.

This seems a useful introduction to IP which could well be emulated even in advanced countries such as the UK where the difficulties of SME in obtaining relevant and comprehensive advice on IP were highlighted by Prof Hargreaves in his report in May 2011.