Copyrights can be protected under the Intellectual Property Law No. 5 for the year 1999. The implementing regulations of this law is yet to be issued by the Ministry of Culture, which at the time of printing of this handbook had not been issued.

Protection will be granted to authors of literary, artistic and scientific works of whatever the value or kind or purpose or way of expression. Generally, protection will be provided for the works whose means of expression is writing, sound, drawing, image, motion pictures, creative titles or computer software. Translation of original works is also protected. Should the Author of a non Arabic work not translate his work within 5 years of issuance, then the Ministry of Culture will have the right to translate this work into Arabic and compensation to the author will be provided.

The duration of the protection is for the lifetime of the author plus 50 years after his death or 20 years from the date of publication in the cases of cinematographer works, works of corporate bodies, works published for the first time after the death of the author.

The Law reserves the right to allow reproducing protectable works by means of photocopying without obtaining the author's permission by public libraries, non-commercial documentation centers and educational, cultural and scientific institutions, provided that the number of copies so reproduced is limited to their needs and not detrimental to the interests of the author.

Enforcing authority is the officers with judicial police powers selected on the strength of a decision by the Minister of Justice in coordination with the Minister of Information and Culture. An unauthorized publication of an author's work of art is penalized by imprisonment . The implementing regulations for the Kuwaiti Patent & Intellectual Property Laws of 1999 are expected to address different issues regarding Patent, Industrial model and Utility model and copyright registrations. At the time of printing of this handbook the implementing regulations not been issued.

The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances.

Abu-Ghazaleh Intellectual Property Bulletins

For further information you make also like to view the Intellectual Property Bulletins published monthly by Abu-Ghazaleh Intellectual Property - IP Bulletins