This update is to help ECTA members and IP community at large stay informed about upcoming ECTA events and plan ahead. Registration links and further details will be shared via direct email communication in due course.If you are not a member and would like to receive updates on ECTA events and activities, please email ecta@ecta.org to be included on our mailing list.30 October - 1 November 2025ECTA Autumn Meeting - Lyon, FranceOpen to ECTA Supervisory Board and Committee members onlyRegistration is open via the ECTA private site31 October 2025ECTA Workshop 'Crafting European Geography: News and Case Law in the GI World' - Lyon, FranceOpen to allRegister here26 February 2026ECTA Round Table - Alicante, SpainIn collaboration with the University of Alicante and Magister LvcentinvsOpen to allMore information will follow5 March 2026ECTA ®etreat - Munich, GermanyOpen to allThis event will focus on patent-related topics. More information will follow.17-20 June 2026ECTA 44th Annual Conference “Green Light for Growth” - Dublin, IrelandOpen to allRegistration is expected to open at the end of January / beginning of February 2026.15-17 October 2026  ECTA Autumn Meeting - Porto, PortugalOpen to ECTA Supervisory Board and Committee members onlyMore information will followSpring 2027  ECTA ®etreat - The Hague, The NetherlandsIn collaboration with The Benelux Office for Intellectual PropertyMore information will follow

ECTA invites all IP professionals and students to participate in the ECTA Award competition by submitting an article or essay of importance for the development of EU Intellectual Property Law. We are pleased to continue our collaboration with the Journal of Intellectual Property Law & Practice by Oxford University Press, for both the professional and student categories.One winner will be selected from each category (professional and student) and will receive a monetary prize of €1,000 and 18 months of complimentary ECTA membership. Winners will also be honoured by ECTA President at the Award Ceremony during the ECTA 44th Annual Conference in Dublin (19 June 2026) and invited to join us for the gala dinner.Furthermore, an interview with the winners will be featured in the October 2026 edition of the ECTA Bulletin, and the winning papers will be showcased on the ECTA website. A one-year complimentary online subscription to the Journal of Intellectual Property Law & Practice will be granted to winners and, if not previously published elsewhere, the winning papers will also be considered for publication in the Journal.Please consult the ECTA Award submission requirements and judging criteria and send your paper to ecta@ecta.org by 15 February 2026. Kindly indicate in your email whether you are participating in the Professional or Student category.All submissions will be evaluated by the ECTA Professional Affairs and Membership Committee with the support of other Committees and under the supervision of the Board of Directors. The publication of the winning papers in the Journal of Intellectual Property Law & Practice is subject to the final decision of its editors.

IP valuation has gained increasing international attention, with recent initiatives by institutions at the European and international level. Nonetheless, reliable IP valuation tools remain limited, particularly for SMEs and practitioners, making it difficult to advise on the topic, secure financing, negotiate agreements, or maximise returns on innovation. Credible valuation methods need to be identified and assessed.ECTA has started exploring the topic, for example at the ECTA Retreat 2024 and through dedicated webinars in partnership with other organisations, but now aims to deepen its knowledge and contribution by creating a dedicated IP Valuation Task Force.The Task Force will:Map and evaluate existing valuation methodologies for different IP rights and sectorsProvide recommendations and input upon request to relevant institutions (European Commission, EUIPO, etc.)Share knowledge with ECTA membersContribute to ECTA’s academic programme (workshops and conference sessions)Explore partnerships with valuation experts, financial institutions, and relevant governmental bodiesThe initial task force mandate is 12 months after which it will be reassessed. We invite all ECTA members with relevant experience in IP valuation to apply here. As we are aware this is a niche field, please also share this initiative with colleagues, who are not yet members of ECTA, but who have expertise and knowledge in IP valuation and might be interested to join the association and the task force.

By Marius Schneider, ECTA International Trade Committee, IPvocate Africa, Ebene, MauritiusIn a recent decision, the Court of Appeal of Tanzania has held African Regional Intellectual Property Organization (ARIPO) trade marks designating Tanzania to be unenforceable, because Tanzania has not domesticated the Banjul Protocol on Marks. As a reaction to this decision, it is now no longer possible to designate Tanzania in an ARIPO trade mark application. Tanzania is reassuring the IP community that they are pursuing all legal and administrative avenues to expedite the domestication of the Banjul Protocol.Background on the Ruling of the Court of Appeal of Tanzania The Court of Appeal of Tanzania has held, in a judgement delivered on 26 September 2025 in Lakairo Industries Group Co Limited and others v/ Kenafrica Industries Limited and others (Civil appeal no. 593 of 2022), that ARIPO trade marks designating Tanzania are not enforceable, because the country has not domesticated the Banjul Protocol.Kenafrica Industries Limited had initiated a trade mark infringement action against their former distributor Lakairo Industries Group Co Limited, because the latter has after the termination of the distribution agreement started to use several brands of Kenafrica Industries Limited. Kenafrica Industries Limited was successful on the basis of infringement of its trade marks in the first instance but lost in the appeal proceedings.The Court of Appeal of Tanzania held that the ARIPO trade marks of Kenafrica Industries Limited designating Tanzania were unenforceable in Tanzania, because the country did not transpose the Banjul Protocol into national law.The judgement can be criticised for leaving several grey areas (including uncertainty over trade marks on which the infringement action was based) and for not exploring the notion of bad faith agent trade marks (Article 6septies of the Paris Convention for the Protection of Industrial Property).The Court of Appeal of Tanzania is the highest level in the justice delivery system in Tanzania, and therefore no further appeal is possible.Tanzania is a dualist country: to be valid international treaties must be transformed into national law In International Public Law, a difference is made between monist countries, in which international treaties are directly applicable in the domestic legal system and may even take precedence over conflicting domestic laws, and dualist countries, in which treaties need to be incorporated into local law to be applicable.Tanzania, as many Commonwealth African states, follows the dualist approach, meaning that international law is not automatically part of its domestic legal system and requires separate legislative action to be implemented. Treaties must be transformed into national law, typically through an act of parliament, before they can be applied by domestic courts.The ARIPO Banjul Protocol has not been transformed into national law in Tanzania and as a result the Court of Appeal of Tanzania has held ARIPO trade marks designating Tanzania to be unenforceable.ARIPO informs the users that it is no longer possible to designate Tanzania On 23 October 2025 ARIPO informed the IP community that, further to a decision of the Tanzanian IP Office, it is until further notice no longer possible to designate Tanzania in an ARIPO trade mark application.ARIPO has reassured users that Tanzania is pursuing all legal, administrative, and diplomatic avenues to expedite the domestication of the Banjul Protocol on Marks.Trade mark owners should contemplate the filing of a national trade mark in Tanzania Owners of ARIPO trade marks designating Tanzania with active business interests in the country should contemplate the filing of a national trade mark in Tanzania to exclude any risk for the trade marks to be held unenforceable. It is likely to take some time before Tanzania has domesticated the Banjul Protocol and it is not certain that this domestication is retroactive.About ARIPO The African Regional Intellectual Property Organization (ARIPO) is one of the two regional IPR organisations in Africa. As of May 2025, there were 22 member states. However, only member states that are contracting parties to the relevant Protocols can be designated through ARIPO applications. For example, although Somalia and Sudan are members of ARIPO, they are not contracting parties to the Banjul Protocol on Marks, which establishes a common trade mark application filing system and therefore cannot be designated. Only 11 states may currently be designated through an ARIPO trade mark: Botswana, Cape Verde, Eswatini, The Gambia, Lesotho, Liberia, Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia, Sao Tome and Principe, Uganda, and Zimbabwe. According to a communiqué of ARIPO dated 23 October 2025, Tanzania is until further notice not eligible for designation as a reaction to the decision of the Court of Appeal of Tanzania.