WORLD TRADE 
ORGANIZATION 
Council for Trade-Related Aspects 
of Intellectual Property Rights IP/N/1/BHR/1 
20 January 1998 
(98-0199) 
Original: English 
NOTIFICATION OF LAWS AND REGULATIONS 
UNDER ARTICLE 63.2 OF THE AGREEMENT 
Bahrain 
By means of a communication from the Permanent Mission of the State of Bahrain, dated 
19 December 1997, the following communication has been received from Bahrain under Article 63.2 
of the Agreement. 
NOTIFICATION RELATING TO ARTICLES 3, 4 AND 5 
With reference to the TRIPS Agreement, Articles 3, 4 and 5 in conjunction with Article 63 .2 
and the TRIPS Council DecisioIPof 21 November 1995, we enclose herewith a copy of the State of 
Bahrain Legislative Decree No. (10) of the Year 1993 with respect to Copyright Law1• 
Please also note that the State of Bahrain joined the Berne Convention for the Protection of 
Literary and Artistic Works in October 1996. 
1In English only. .IP/N/1/BHR/1 
Pag~~ 
STATE _PF BAHRAIN 
MINISTRY OF CABINET AFFAIRS & INFORMATION-· 
DtREC'T:ORAT~ OF PUBLICATIONS 
LEGISLATIVE·D_ECREE N0.(10) 
. OF THE .. YEAR 1993 
WITH RESPECT TO COPYRIGHT LAW IP/N/l~HR/1 
Page 3 
.LEGIStATiVE DECREE N0.(10) OF THE YEAR 1993 
WiTH·RESPECT TO COPYRIGHT 'LAW 
We. Isa Bin Sulman Al' Khalifa1 Amir of the. State of Bahrain, 
Having reviewed the Constltution, 
And _Amiri Order No.(4) of 1975 1 
And. Legislative Decree No.(12) .of 1971 with respect to Promulgating 
the Civil and Commercial Procedures Act, as amended, · 
And Legislative Decree No.(20) of 1975 with respec:;t to the Legal 
Deposit of Intellectual Works, 
And Decree No.(5) of 1986 with respect IP the Setting up and 
Organisation of the National· Councif for Culture, Arts and literature, 
And upon the submission of .the Ministe.~ for Information, 
And with the Approva1 of the Council" of Ministers. 
HEREBY DECREE THE FOLLOWING LAW: 
Article ill.i 
An .. a~thor is a person Who produces or invents a WOf'K In tne T1e1cs OT 
literature1 science, ans or who writes any written work or produces any 
creative work relating to any kind of knowledge, in which case such 
intellectual work is attributed to him by way of clearly displaying his· 
name on it or with the use of a pen-name or by any other method unless 
there is proof to the contrary . 
. Article (21, 
(1) This Law shall protect authors of cre~ive-works which are of a literary, 
scientific, artistic and cultural nature in general regardless of the nature 
of such works, or the type thereof, or the method of expression used 
therein, or the purpose of writing or creation. 
(2) The aforesaid protection shall be applicable to the authors of the 
following works: · · Jf/N/1/BHR/l 
Page 4 
(a) Books·, brochures, research-works and all print~d materials. 
(b) Speeches, .seminars and literary scientific and_ artistic lectures. 
·(c) · Afl ~orks of drama and musicals. 
(d) 
(e) 
(f) 
(g} 
(h) 
(I) 
(j) 
(k) Songs, musical c9mp,ositions and tunes of songs. 
Paintings, . .sculptur~, decorative works, engraving and photography. , . 
Photographs, maps, geographical charts, engineering and architectural 
p"lans and designs. 
Plastic art works and works relating· to topography, architecture and 
sciences. 
Choreographic works and pantomime presentations. 
Cinematographic, radio and television works. 
Persona11y created computer software, including data· bases. The 
aforesaid software is defined as the entire phrases · and instructions 
expressed in any language, code or sign and intended for .use by 
computers directly or indirectly with the aim of realising specific-res1,Jlts. 
Works involving compilation and classification of folk heritage items. 
Pt~tection shall be ap·plicable to the title of the intellectual work if it is 
characterised by being of a creative n~ture and if the words ·are not 
common for indicating the subject of the intellectual work. 
Article (3): 
1. Protection under this Law shall. be I enjoyed by any person who 
translates. summarises,. explains .or slmplirfe.s the v,tellectual property· 
indicated in Article. (2) with the approv1fof their ~wr:aers so that the said 
property takes a new form. The same protection shall be enjoyed by 
authors of encyclopedias, language dictionaries and se\ections of 
intellectual ar.d creative works. However, copyright of photographic 
items shall. not result in prohibiting . a person IP/N/1/BHRLl 
Page 5 
. . . 
from .taking new pictures of the c,bject to be photographed even if these 
new photographs · are taken from the same place and in general under 
the same coriditiqns from which·the earlier photographs were ~aken. 
2. . The protection provided for in the preceding paragraph shall ·not prejudice 
the protection enjoyed by aulhors of original intellectual property. 
1. 
(a) 
(b) 
(c) 
(d} 
2. Article W,; 
Protection provided for In Articles 2 and 3 of this Law shall.not be 
applicable to: 
Court judgements passed by· the law courts of various degrees and 
translations of such judgements. 
Official documents such as texts of laws, Amiri Decrees, administrative 
orders, international treaties. their transl~tions and all official 
documents. 
News reports·which are published or broadcast to the g~neral public. 
Intellectual works which become part of the public domain. 
However, if the · materials provided for in the preceding Paragraph are 
published in compiled publications for a reason that is attributed to 
creative efforts, arrangement or any other personal effort, they shall be . 
considered as intellectual property whict:t shall enjoy protection by this 
Law. 
Article Lfil:. 
. . 
1. Copyrights shall be attributed and -confirmed in favour of the author 
solely unless there is a written agreement;to the contrary. 
2. .An author shall have the exclusive right to determi.nEt whether to· publish . 
his ,intellect~a1 property and:tQ.decide t~e·method of such publication. 
3. He shall have the exclusive right to financially exploit his intellectual 
property in the manner he deems appropriate.· ·No third party sha·11 
exercise that .right. except by a written permission from him or his 
SUCC8$SOr .. IP/N/1/BRR/1 
~age 6 
4. · However, the rights of an author shall not be deemed prejudiced by the 
mention of his intellectual property in the course of a radio or television 
presentation of current e~ents. 
Article (6): 
For· the purpose of directly exploiting his intel.lectual property, an author.· 
shall be entitled to do the·foltowing or to·giv~ a written permission for 
the following: 
1. Reproduce· the intelfectuai property by_ all availa.ble means, including 
ph_otography1 cinematography, audio or video recording. 
2. · 1·ranslating the aforesaid property into another language, adapting, 
modifying, abridging, summarising, explaining or musically repro.ducing 
it . 
i. Presenting 8:n · intellectual property to :the public by way of a public 
performance, television, cinematographic or theatrical presentation, 
radio broadcasting or any other method, especially publ_ication. 
4. Making an objection to any addition, deletion or alteration to· his 
intellectual property without obtaining his permission. 
5. Using any other method deemed fit by the. author without being in 
confli~l with the public interest or order. 
Article (7): 
Notwithstanding the provisions of the preceding Article, if an omission. or 
alteration takes place in the translation of an intellectual property, 
modifying or developing it in any ott\'er manner, an author or his 
successor "sh·at1 not have the right to make an objection unless this shall· 
result in -affeetlng the author's reputation; ,honour or ,academic or artistic 
status or If 1he ·content of the relevant w9rk is prejudiced. · 
In all cases, mention shall be made about what lh~ modified intellectual 
property contains in· terms of alteratio~ to the original property. Article (8}: IPiN/1/BHR/1 
Page 7 
1. Government ministries . and organisation$ sha.11 have the right to make 
use of any intellectual property which was previously published for ·using 
it for educational information, caltural or-reiigious purposes iri order to 
serve the· public interest, ·provided that the source of that intellectual 
property shali be in'dicated . or the name of its author in a manner that . 
shall not prejudice lhe· author's financial rights. · 
2. The media, newspapers ~nd. official magazines may .quote, publish or, 
broadcast parts or extracts from any · intel_lectua1 property without the 
approval of its · owner ·if such action contributes to enhancing . the 
. awarene.ss or education of the-public opinion, provided that credit ·shall 
be given to the intellectual property in question and the name of its 
author in a manner that shall not prejudice the autho~s financial rights. 
Article (9): 
An auttior or his _ public or private successor may oppose the acts 
indicated in Article (8) should they have the effed _of damaging the 
author's reputation, literary or ·artistic fame or cause harmful effects to 
his financial rights. 
Article (101: 
1. · A~·demic and cultural institutes and universities, official documentation 
and research ·centres and public libraries· shall be entitled to reproduce 
or photocopy literary; scientific and artistic intellectual property to the 
extent of the· number of copies required for meeting the requirements 
and activities of· these institutions and serving· their objects without. 
obtaining a prior permission from the author, provided that this shall not 
prejudice their legitimate financial interest~ . 
. 2. The·· military forces music band shall J1,ave the right to play. musical 
composmons without being under an -obJigation to pay any consideration 
to the composer so long as such plSying does not yield any financial 
pro~eds. IP/N/lJBHR/1 
Page 8 
Article (11 ): . . 
Once an author has published his intellectual property, he shall not be 
~ntitled to bar any p~rsoh who reproduces his intellectuai property, 
translates, abridges, photocopies or produces extracts therefror:n. 
provide~ that such act shall be-for his own personal use ~Ad shall not 
have the intent of reaping any financial returns, provided that credit 
shall be given to that particular property and the name of its author. 
However, publication of the aforesaid property shall not take place 
except after obtaining a permissi_on from the original owner and author. 
Article {12): · 
Owners of original fine art works and writers of original music notes 
shall be empowered1 despite having assigned the ownership of their 
intellectual property in favour of another person without consideration, 
to claim a compensation-which shall not exceed one half of the value of 
such work of art if it is sold at a publ_ic auction or if it makes financial 
returns as a cons~quence of the sale or,disposal thereof. This provision 
shall not be ap~licab.le to works of architecture or app~ied art. 
Article (13): 
If the public interest requires the publication of an intellectual property 
which has not been · published or republished by the author's heirs in 
spite of formally requesting them to do so by the National Council for 
Culture, Arts and Literature, the Minister fqr Information may by virtue of 
an order to. be issued by him instruct the· aforesaid National Council to 
publish the said-property after the lapse of one year from the date of the 
formal request to the heirs while giving them a fair compensation without 
prejudice to their right to contest the aforesaid ordf;!r of the Minister for 
Information before the High Civil Court within thirty days from the date of 
becoming aware of such order. 
The Ministry of. Information .•may .seek .. the 1ssue Qf an order-from the 
·High. Civil Court to oblige the heirs to qeliver the intellectual property.to 
the National Council for Culture, Arts and Literature, if necessary. 
Artic,le (14): 
Ah author may ·do any legal act that has the effect of transferring all or 
some of the rights provided for in this Law. · · Article .l1ll.;. : · IP/N/l/BHR/1 
Page 9 
:1. · All legal acts having' the conse·quence of transferring copyrights must be 
confirmed in writin·g by virtue of contracts which shall be legalised and 
entefed into b~tween the author or whoever to whom the rights of an 
author and his beneficiary have been devolved. Such contracts ·shall be 
made 1n triplicate or in a' number of copies in excess of the number of 
the contracting parties by one copy·. The said contracts shall contain the 
full names of contracting · parties. their nationalities, kind of intellectual 
property, the disposal affecting it and the legal consequences of such 
act. 
:2. One copy of every legal act involving a transfer of copyright shall be 
deposited with the Copyright Protection Office. at the Ministry of 
. Information. 
3. . The Minister for Information shall issue an order regulating the setting 
up of. an office· belonging to the Ministry of Information for protection of 
copyright, method of depositing legal acts, determining ways and means 
of such deposit · after obtaining the approval of the Council of Ministers 
to the pres~ibed fees in this respect. · 
Article (16t: 
A disposal by an author involving his entire Intellectual works in future 
shall be deemed null and void. 
Article (17): 
. A disposal of the ownership of the only original copy of an intellectual 
·property or several copies thereof shall not nave the consequence of 
transferring copyright to the aforesaid property. 
· Article (18): 
If more than one person partlclpate in producing an intellectual property 
so that it is not feasible to separate the share of each of them in this 
· jointly produced work, all of them shall be considered equally as the 
joint o.wners of such property unless there is an agreement to the 
contrary . . . IP/N/1/BHR/1 
Page 10 
In. such case, the rights arising· from such ~pyri.ght may not-be 
exercised except .by the unanimous agreement of all the joint authors. 
failing which their difference shall be settled through· the jurisdiction of 
the' High Civil Court.· 
Each of the co-authors shall have t~e right ts bring a summary legal 
action upon the occurrence · of any breach of copyright and the right to 
commence a legal action·, of his $hare· of the compensation for the 
damage occurring as a result thereof. 
Article (19): 
If several persons take pan In producing an intellectual property so that 
it is possible to separate the share of each of them, each of the 
participants. shall have the right to exploit the part that he has personally 
contributed1 provided that this shall not prejudice the exploitation of the 
jointly owned intellectual property unless there is· an agreement to the 
contrary. 
Article (20i: 
Without prejudice· -=to the author of the literary part · of ··intellectual 
properties involving musicals. . the music composer shall have the 
excJusive right to authorise the public performance of the enlifejointly 
owned intellectual property, its presentation, publication or producing 
copies thereof. 
The a.uthor of the literary part sh.al1 be entitled to publish his own work, 
provf ded that he may not dispose ther,eof to serve as a basis for 
producing another musical property unless there is an agreement to the 
contrary. 
Article Wt 
For co-productions ·of intellectual prop~rty accompanied by music ·and 
choreography· and for· all similar intelleqtua( property,·a choreographer 
shall have the right ·to be authorised t9 present public performances of 
the entire intellectual property, its ·execution or producing copies 
thereof. 
The composer of the music shall be. entitled to dispose of this particular 
. ~lement of the . prop~rty, provided that· he shall not use it in another 
intellectual property that is similar to the afo·resaid co-production unless 
· there Is an agreement to the contrary. · Article (22): IP/N/1/BHR/1 
Page 11 
. The following shall be considered as a participant in the ownership of a 
citiematographic Intellectual property or work inte,:tded for broadcasting 
on the radio or television: 
1. Script writer or creator of the written concept of the intellectual 
property. 
2. Person who.has adapted the literary work in a manner rendering it 
suitable for this art. 
3. Writer of the dialogue. 
4. Composer of the music who has composed it especially for this kind 
of ~ntellectual property. 
5. Director if he maintains an actual control and undertakes a positive 
role from the intellectual aspect for the materialisation of any such 
intellectual property. 
If a cinematographic intellectual pro~rty or work adapted for radio. or 
television is produced· as an adaptation of a previously produced 
property, the author of the aforesaid previously produ~d preperty shall 
be considered as a co-author of the new intellectual property. 
Article (23}: 
The s~ript writer, writer of the literary adaptation, dialogue writer and 
director shall jointly have the right to present the . cinematographic 
production or the work adapted for radio and television notwithstanding 
any objection from the original author of the literary work or music 
composer without prejudice to the rights of persons making objections 
on grounds relatin~ to their participation in creating the work. 
The author· of the literary element or m~ical element of the work shall 
be entitled to publish his intellectual propertr in' another manner Un.less 
· there is ·an agreement to the contrary. 
Article f 24): 
If one of the participants in creating a cinematographic intellectual 
eroperty abstains. from CQmpleting the part of the work.belonging thereto. 
or is unable to complete the part for which he is responsible for reasons 
· beyond his control, he shall IP/N/1/BHR/1 
Page 17 
not have the right to bar the other patticipants frdm using the part that 
he previously completed. He shall be deemed as an author in respect of 
the part that has been completed, hence he shall enjoy the ri.9hts arising 
therefrom. 
Article (25): 
A producer of a cinematographic, radio or television intellectual property 
shall be considered as the natural or corporate· person who undertakes 
its completion and assumes- responsibility for such completion or who 
makes available .to the authprs of the said property the material-and 
financial resources required for its production. 
In all cases, a producer shall be deemed as the publisher of the 
intellect~al property and he shall have all the rights of the publisher. 
During the mutualf}' agreed exploitation period, the producer shall be 
deemed as an agent acting on behalf of the authors of the intellectual 
property and for their successor in agreeing upon its presentation and 
exploitation without prejudice to the rights of authors of literary or 
musical intellectual properties unless 'there is an agreement to the 
contrary. · · 
Article (26):_ 
A collective intellectual property is a certain intellectual property cieated 
with t~e partlcipaUon of a group under the guidance of a natural or 
ccirfforate person so that it becomes. impossible to separate the work of 
each of the participants and to identify it individually.· 
The natural or corporate person who guides the creation and co­
ordination of such intellectual property shall solely exercise the rights of 
the author with rasped to such intellectual_ property. 
Article (271: 
I 
If an intellectual property is created for the· account of a natural person 
or a private or public corporate entity, copyright shall be confirmed in 
favour of the person who created the aforesaid property unless there is 
an agreement to the contrary. Article (28): IP/N/1/BHR/1 
Page 13 
For the ir)teltectual properties .which carry a pseudonym or the works 
that do not carry the author's name, the publisher whose name appears 
on the intellectual property shall be deemed to ha'le been authorised 
directly by the author In exercising the rights established therefor in this 
Law unless the opposite is _proved. 
Article ~9): 
A person who takes a pho\ograph shall not be entitled to display, 
publish or distribute its negative or copies thereof without a. permission 
.from the persons who have been photographed LI:nless there is an 
agreement to the eontrary. 
This provision shall not be applicable if the publication of the 
photograph takes place for special events Which took place in public or 
relates to public figures or concerns well-known persons or authorised 
by the government authorities for the public good. 
However, it shall not be permitted in the preceding instance to disp,ay or 
circulate the photograph If such action results· in aff~ihg the honour, 
reputation or esteem of the person it represents. The person appearing 
in the photograph shall have the power to authorise its publication~ln the 
newspapers, magazines -and such other periodicals even if 1his is not 
permitted by the photographer unless otherwise agreed upon. 
These provisions shaU be applicable to pictures whatever may be the 
method of producing them whether theY, are paintings, engravings or 
any other methods. · 
Article (30): 
( 1 ) Individual or joint rights of authors shal{ devolve upon their tegai heirs 
after their death unless ·there is a will to the contrary. 
. J 
(2) Where an autttor has no heir or leg~tees under his will, the share of 
such author to the joint copyright shall devolve upon his co·authors 
unless otherwise agreed upon. 
A~icle (31): 
( 1 )Copyri·ght protection for ·an f ntellectual property shall IP/N/1/BHR/1 
Page 14 
lapse· fifty calendar years after-the deatt, of the author. For jointly owned 
Intellectual properties, such period shall be calculated from the date of 
the death of the last survivor of the copauthors. 
(2) . Copyright protection shall lapse upon the expiry of fifty -calendar year·s 
from the date of publication for the following intellectual works: . ., 
(a): 
(b) 
(c) 
{d) 
(3) 
(4) Cinematographic films, applied arts works and photographs. 
Intellectual properties that are published under a pseudonymor without' 
carrying the author's name 1:1ntess the identity of the author has been 
revealed during that period. 
Intellectual properties belonging to public or private corporate e_ntities. 
Intellectual properties which are published for the first time after the 
author's death. 
Protection period for computer software shall lapse upon the expiry of 
fifty years from the date of completin~ the work thereon or upon the 
expiry of forty years from the date of publication, whichever is earlier. 
f n all cases, if the intelledual property consists of several parts which 
were published separately and at different Intervals, each part ~t:lafl be 
deemed as an independent intellectual property in calCUiating the 
protection period. 
Article f 321: 
Copyright protection for an intellectual property published in a foreign 
language and the copyright belonging to the translator of such work in 
another foreign language to translate such work into Arabic shall lapse 
upon the expiry of fifty years from the date of publishing the first edition 
of the originaJ or translated intellectual prtjperty. 
However, the National Council for Culture, Ms and l,.iterature may upon 
an order of the Minister for lnformatipn authorise the translation of 
foreign intellectual works into Arabic tan less the author or translator 
exercises this right during three years from the date of publishing the 
first edition of the original or · · IP/N/1/BHR/1 
Pag~ 15. 
translated intelledual · prope·rty 4nder the terms to be determined· by the 
NCCAL, provided th~t consideration shall be given to the right of the 
aut~or or his successor to a fair compensation. 
Article (33): 
(1) An author's will shall b~ implemented with resped to prohibiting 
the publication of. his intellectual work or adhering to the conditions 
of such publication and the date fixed therefor. 
(2) Contracts relating to tt")e rights of authors to exploiting their 
intellectual properties . and e~tered into with third parties prior to 
their death shall be carried out without alteration. 
Article f 341: 
Every person whose rights seHorth in this Law have been violated shall · 
have the right to compensation. 
Article f 35): 
Without prejudice to the provisions of Legislative Decree NG.(-20) of 
1975 with respect to the Legal Deposit of Publications, the pubiishers of 
literary, · artistic · and scientific properties which are· published by 
producing copies thereof in the State of. Bahrain sha:I prior to the 
distribution thereof t1eposit et their expense three copies of each of such 
properties with the Copyright Protedic;m Office at the Ministry of 
Information and details about the intellectual property shall be published 
in the Official Gazette. 
An ·order of the Minister for lnfonnation shall be issued with respect to 
the rules of deposit and the prescribed fees for such deposit after 
securing the consent of the Council ·o~ Ministers witti respect to such 
fees. · 
Failure to effect the said deposit sh~II'° be punishable · by a fine· not­
exceeding BD100 without prejudice ld · the requirement to effect the 
deposit. These provisio~s shall not be applicable to the intellectual 
works published ·in newspapers and magazines unless such works are 
published separately. IP/N/1/BHR/1 
Page 16 
Article f 36): 
AA attachment may not be p1a~d over the author's copyright for the 
fulfilment of a court judgement but an attachment may be placed over 
copies of 'the published intellectual property. Further, intellectual 
properties the owner of which dies before their publication may not be .. 
subject to an attachment unless it is conclusively proved that he sought 
to publish them before his death. 
Article (37): 
A punishment of imprisonment for a period not exceeding one year and 
a fine of no more than 801 ,OOO, or either penalty shall be inflicted upon 
the following: 
(a) Every person who violates the copyrights provided for in Articles ·sand 
6 of this Law. 
(b) Every person who brings into the country with the intent to sell,·s$IIS or 
circulates _with the aim of trading or promotes to the public in any 
manner whatsoever an imitated or forge~ intellectual property. 
(c) Every -person who reveals or facilitates the revealJng ·of computer 
softWare before the publication thereof. 
In case of recurrence of any of the offences provided for in this Article 
· within three· years from the date of passing the judgement for the above 
penalty. the court may rule for inflicting the ma~imum penalty. 
Article (38): 
In addition to passing a judgement with respect to inflicting the p-enalty 
provided for in the preceding Article, the Court · may order the 
confiscation and destruction of all the imitated intellectual works and the 
tools arid facilities apprehended in respect of the case and used in 
committing the offence. 
Article (391: 
. . 
The Summary Proceedings· Judge shall, upon a law-suit filed by the 
author or his successor and following the procedures set forth in the 
Civi-1 and. Commercial Procedures-Act, be ~mpowered to order that the 
following steps be taken in respect of every intellectual property which IP/N/1/BHR/1 
Page 17 
has . been published or performed in violation of the provisions· of th·is Law: . 
1. Giving a detailed desaiption of the intellectual property. 
2. Suspending the publication, performance or . production of the 
intelledua! property. 
3. Placing a precautionary attachment over" the original or copy of the 
intellectual property as well as the items used in republishing the 
aforesaid property. 
4. Proving the public performance in respect of presenting, ading or 
reciting any intellectual p~operty for an audience and barring the 
continuation of the current performance or prohibiting it from taking 
place in the future. · 
5. Appointing a court receiver in respect of the intellectual property 
subject to the dispute to undertake the task of republishing or resume 
performance, making or reproducing copies of the intellectual 
property, provided that the proceeds shall be deposited in the Court 
Treasury. The receivership shall be terminated upon a mutual 
agreement to be reached by the concerned parties or by a court 
judgement. · · 
6. Drawing up an account of . the proceeds arising from publication or 
performance through an expert to be nominated for this pqrpose if 
required and placing a precautionary attachment over the-revenues 
arising in all cases. 
The Summary Proceedings Judge shall be empowered to order the 
apf,ointment of an expert to enforce i,:i the execution of the above 
actions and to instruct the plaintiff to deposit an appropriate 
guarantee. The plaintiff shall refer the fundamental dispute· to the 
relevant court within the fifteen days following the passing of the 
judgement. If an action is not . brought during this time Hmit, a 
judgement shall cease to have effect. 
Article (40): 
The court of law before which the iss~e of dispute is being heard may, 
at the request of the author or who£Ner acts on his behalf, resolve to 
destroy copies or reproductions of the intellectual property published in 
· an illegal manner together with the materials used in its publication, 
provided that they shall not be fit for another work or by alterfng the 
features of the copies, repr~ductions and materials or rendering them 
. uhfit for business all of which shall be at the cost of the party rendered 
liable. IP/N/1/BHR/l 
Page 18 
H~ever, where the copyright will lapse after a period of less than two 
years with effect from the date of passing the judgement and without 
prejudice to the .copyrights. provided for in Articles 5 and 6 of ttiis·Law, 
the court may replace the judgement for destruction or altering the 
features P?ISS a ruling for confirmation of the precautionary attachment 
for settlement of any award of compensation adjudged in favour of the 
author. · · 
Nevertheless, a judgement for destruction or altering the features may 
not be handed down if the dispute in question relates to the translation 
of an intellectual property into Arabic in violation of the provision of 
Article· (30) Paragraph 2, a,nd the judgement shall be restricted to 
confirm(ng the. precautionary attachment over. the translated work for 
settlement of compensations adjudged by the court in favour of the 
author. 
In all cases, for the author's debt arising from his claim for 
compensation he shall have ·a lien over the net proceeds of selling 
things and cash . funds subject to attachment for settlement ot dues 
thereto and no priority shall exist over such lien save for the legal·cost.s 
and expanses incurred towards the safekeeping and maintenance of the 
said items and for the collection of such amounts. 
Article (41 ): 
An author shall have the exclusive right to request the High Civil Coun, 
should there be serious reasons deemed appropriate by the Court, to 
withdraw his intellectual work from circulation or make alterations 
thereof in spite of· the legal disposal a~ecting the right of exploitation 
while the author shall express willingness to pay a fair compensation to 
whoever has been transferred the right of financial exploitation lo be 
paid within a term to be determined by the Court otherwise the 
judgement shall cease to have .effect.. 
Article (42): 
Notwithstanding the provisions of Articles 36, 37 and 38 of this Law, it 
shall not be permitted to place an attachment over, alter the feature, 
confiscate or damage properties and buildings carrying architeclurnl 
designs with the excuse of preserving the architect's copyright even if it 
has been proved that there is a breach of copyright to the drawing and 
design,. but his right to ~laim ~amages ~'1all be reserved. Ar11cle (43): 
The provisions of this Law· shall be ap~licable to: IPIN/1/BHR/1 
Page 19 
1. Intellectual properties of Bahrafni authors that are published for the first· 
time in Bahrain or outside it. .. 
2. Intellectual proper:ties of foreign authors that are published for the first 
time in 'Bahrain. 
3. Intellectual properties of Arat,, authors who are· nationals of the member 
states that ratified th~ Arab Copyright Protection Agreemel')t ofJ.958~ \ 0\ '6 6 
that are published for the first time in one of the member states that 
ratified the Agreement. 
Article (44): 
Without prejudice to the provisions of the preceding Article, the 
provisions of this Law shall be applicable to a11 th~ intellectual 
propenies in existence . on the effective date thereof. However. for the 
calculation of the period for protedion of such propertie;S, 'it shall include 
the period which lapsed from the date of the fixed event for the 
commencement of the effective period until the date on which this· Law 
comes into force. 
The provisions of this Law shall be applicable to. all the facts and 
agreements subsequent to the date of its coming into force even if they 
relate to intellectual properties published, screened or performed prior 
to that date. 
For the agreements which were made before the effective dale of this 
Law, its provisions shall not be applicable thereto but shall remain· 
subject to the provisions in force at the time of complelir.g theri,. 
Article {45): 
The Minister for Information shall Issue the necessary orders for 
implementing the provisions of this Law. Every provision which conflicts 
with its provisions shalt be revoked. IP/N/1/BHR/1 
Page 20 
Article (46): 
The Ministers, each in his respective capacity, shall implement this Law 
which shall come Into effect from the date of its p4bllcation In the Official 
Gazette. 
Signed: Isa Bin Sulman Al Khalrfa, 
Amir of the State. of Bahrain,. 
Issued .at Rifaa Palace 
Dated: 17th Thilhija, 1413 Hijra 
Corresp. 7th June, 1993.