APAA Webinar Series: Trademark Caravan 2022 – Spotlight on Cambodia

The Trademark Caravan is an initiative of APAA, travelling around the Asian jurisdictions and focusing on the trademark law and practice of one jurisdiction at a time.  The first stop of the Trademark Caravan is Cambodia. 

Cambodia is a member of significant trade blocs in the Asian region, namely, the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP).  Prior to the pandemic, Cambodia was a world leader in economic growth, having sustained an average growth rate of 7.7 percent between 1995 and 2019. The pandemic caused some setback, but it is predicted that Cambodia’s economy will grow by 4.5 percent in 2022, and over the medium term, the economy is expected to grow at around 6 percent annually.  (Source: World Bank)   

At this webinar, we have invited Directors of the Cambodia Intellectual Property Office and eminent trade mark practitioners of Cambodia to share with us practical information about registration of trade mark as well as enforcement of trade mark rights in Cambodia.  We have also invited practitioners from India, Indonesia, New Zealand and Vietnam to update participants on new developments in trade mark law and practice in their jurisdictions.

Programme

  • Welcome address, Mr. Hirohito Katsunuma, Immediate Past President of APAA
  • Keynote address, H.E. Mr. Suon Vichea, Director of Department of Intellectual Property of Cambodia
  • New Developments of Trade Mark Law of Cambodia, To Rith, Deputy Director of Department of Intellectual Property of Cambodia
  • Updates on trade mark laws in India, Indonesia, New Zealand and Vietnam
    • Vaibhav Vutts, Vutts & Associates, India
    • Ananda Ramadhan Maulana, Maulana and Partners Law Fir, Indonesia
    • Tom Robertson, Pipers, New Zealand
    • Nguyen Thi Thu Ha, Vision & Associates, Vietnam
  • How to deal with office actions issued by Registrar of Trade Marks of Cambodia – objections to registration on absolute ground and relative ground, Vichet Ny, VNP Law Office, Cambodia
  • What constitutes trade mark infringement in Cambodia and how to conduct enforcement actions, Chandavya Ing, Tilleke & Gibbins Phnom Penh office, Cambodia

Speakers

  • Hirohito Katsunuma is the Immediate Past President of APAA (2019-2021). He is President of Katsunuma International Patent Office of Japan, and is a patent attorney with litigation qualification, specializing in the areas of computer software, nuclear power, petrochemical engineering, semiconductor, manufacturing equipment and other machinery. Mr. Katsunuma is also Guest Professor of Tokyo University of Marine Science and Technology, and he holds leadership positions in various associations of IP practitioners in Japan.
  • H.E. Mr. Soun Vichea is a senior Government official of Cambodia with over 20 years of experience in the field of intellectual property, trade and development. Currently he holds the position of Advisor to the Cambodian Ministry of Commerce, Director of Department of Intellectual Property and the Head of Secretariat of the National Committee for Intellectual Property. H.E. Mr. Suon Vichea is deeply involved and is responsible for a wide range of intellectual property affairs ranging from policy making, inter-ministry and international coordination and cooperation in the IP field, initiation and development of IP Laws and regulations, raising IP awareness especially in the field of trademarks, geographical indications, trade secret and enforcement. H.E. Mr. Suon Vichea graduated from Royal University of Law and Economics in Cambodia, and has since earned a Master of Law in Intellectual Property (LL.M in IP) from WIPO-International Training Center-ILO-Turin University in Italy; Post Graduate Diploma from Institute Developing Economic Advanced School (IDEA-JETRO) of Japan; Master of Business Administration in International Business from the University of the Thai Chamber of Commerce of Thailand; and Master of Business Administration from Norton University in cooperation with Ateneo de Manila University. He also serves as law lecturer at state and private universities in Cambodia. To Rith joined the civil service in 1994 after graduating from university with a Bachelor of Business Administration degree. He started his career in trade marks, having headed Sections and Bureaux dealing with trade mark registration, post-registration and disputes work. Since 2016, To Rith has taken up the post of Deputy Director of the Department of Intellectual Property of the Ministry of Commerce of Cambodia.
  • Vaibhav Vutts is the founder partner of Vutts & Associates LLP and has over 20 years of practice in intellectual property rights with practice area covering both contentions and non contentious. He holds an honours degree in Chemistry and is a practicing attorney admitted in Bar Council of Delhi and qualified patent agent. Vaibhav is a frequent speaker in IP conferences. He is also visiting faculty to Indian Law Institute, a Deemed University and Craft Development Institute, Ministry of Textiles, GOI. Vaibhav has served in a number of Standing Committees of APAA, is Joint Secretary APAA (India Group) and is currently a member of the Council of APAA
  • Ananda Ramadhan Maulana is a Legal Counsel and Patent Attorney of Indonesia, practicing all aspects of intellectual property law, both contentious and non-contentious. He is co-writer of a number of articles relating to IP law of Indonesia. After graduating from Universitas Indonesia with a Bachelor of Law degree, Ananda read a Master of Law degree at University of California, Berkeley.
  • Tom Robertson has worked in the intellectual property field since 1986 and is vastly experienced in all areas of patent, trademark and design law. Tom has been with Pipers Intellectual Property since 2002. Tom has a BSc (Physics) and is a Registered Patent Attorney in Australia and New Zealand and is a Registered Trade Mark Attorney in Australia. Tom is presently the Vice President of the Council of the New Zealand Intellectual Property Attorneys Inc (NZIPA). Tom takes part in the IPONZ Patent and Trademark Technical Focus Groups that consider and provide advice on Patent and Trade Mark policy and practice.
  • NGUYEN Thi Thu Ha is a partner of Vision & Associates with more than 20 years of experience in the IP field. As registered IP agent and a qualified lawyer of Hanoi Bar Association, her particular strengths are in the field of IP enforcement and litigation, particularly trademark and patent enforcement, and actions against unfair competition. She is also in charge of licensing, franchising and technology transfer relating to IP rights.
  • Vichet Ny is currently Managing Partner, Attorney-at-Law, and accredited Mark Agent at VNP law office, based in Phnom Penh, Cambodia. He has more than 10 years of experience in IP registration, prosecution, advisory and enforcement in Cambodia. He has been providing legal consultancy and assistance to clients from EU, USA, Japan, China, India and other ASEAN countries. Mr. Ny holds a Master Degree in International Commercial Law from University Toulouse 1, France. He completed training on Patent at Centre d’Etudes Internationales de la Propriété Intellectuelle (CEIPI), Strasbourg University, France, and many other training courses on IP in other foreign jurisdictions. Mr. Ny is currently President of APAA Cambodia Group.
  • Chandavya Ing is an associate in the intellectual property group of Tilleke & Gibbins’ Phnom Penh office. She handles IP registration, anti-counterfeiting strategies, enforcement actions, as well as opposition proceedings, mediation proceedings, and enforcement actions. Prior to rejoining Tilleke & Gibbins, Chandavya was a trademark and patent trainee at a market-leading firm in Germany, where she conducted research and prepared arguments in response to opposition before the European Union Intellectual Property Office. Chandavya has an LL.B. from the Royal University of Law and Economics (Cambodia), where she now provides lectures on intellectual property, and an LL.M. in Intellectual Property and Competition Law from the Munich Intellectual Property Law Center (Germany). Chandavya is a trademark agent recognized by the Ministry of Commerce of Cambodia.
  • Rebecca Lo is a Consultant of the law firm Gallant practising the laws of intellectual property, technology, media, entertainment and communications. Rebecca is President of the Hong Kong Group of APAA as well as a Council Member and a member of the Advisory Committee of APAA. Rebecca also serves on the Intellectual Property Committee of The Law Society of Hong Kong. Rebecca is admitted to practise law in Hong Kong and U.S.A. (member of California Bar). She is also a Hong Kong Notary Public, a China-Appointed Attesting Officer, and an accredited mediator.
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