RESTRICTEDWORLD TRADE
ORGANIZATIONIP/C/W/282/Add.1
27 July 2001
(01-3763)
Council for Trade-Related Aspects
of Intellectual Property RightsOriginal:  English
REVIEW OF LEGISLATION
Responses from Oman to the questions posed by Japan and Switzerland
Addendum
By means of a communication from the Permanent Mission of Oman, dated 18 June 2001, the
Secretariat has received the following responses to questions posed by Japan and Switzerland, as
circulated in documents IP/C/W/258 and 263, respectively.
_______________
JAPAN
A. COPYRIGHT AND RELATED RIGHTS
1. Please explain exceptions or exemptions of the National Treatment and Most-Favoured-
Nation Treatment under the Copyright and Neighbou ring Rights Law, if any, as permitted in
Articles 3 and 4 of the TRIPS Agreement.
There are no exceptions or exemptions of National Treatment or MFN Treatment under
Oman's law on Copyright and Neighbouring Rights.
SWITZERLAND
A. GEOGRAPHICAL INDICATIONS
1. Please explain in detail how your legislation provides protection for geographical
indications.
A. Pursuant to the provision of Article 3, the geographical indication shall benefit from
the protection provided for in the Law on the Protection of Geographical Indications,
promulgated in Royal Decree No. 40/2000, whether it is registered or not.
B. Protections also provided against a geographical indication which, although literally
true as to the territory, region or locality in which the goods originate, falselyrepresents to the public that the goods original in another territory.
C. In the case of homonymous geographical indications, protection shall be accorded to
each indication subject to the provisions of paragraph 3 in Article 11 of the same law
provides that whoever commits, intentionally, any of the acts set out in Article 5,IP/C/W/282/Add.1
Page 2
which provides that it is impermissible to name a commodity or display it to the
public in a way to imply that its geographic al origin is not the real origin thereof,
shall be penalised by an imprisonment term not to exceed two years and a penalty of
not more than two thousand Omani Rials or either of these penalties.
B. PATENTS
2. Does your legislation grant patent protection to all categories of products or are there any
exceptions?  If so, please explain in detail what kind of exceptions exist and how they comply with
Article 27 of the TRIPS Agreement.
There are some exceptions: Article 4 of the Patent Law No. 82/2000 provides that, the
following shall be excluded from patentability:
A. Scientific theories, mathematical methods, software, practising pure mental activities
and practising games.
B. Plant and animals other than micro-organi sms, and essentially biological processes
for the production of plants or animals or plant varieties other than non-biological and
microbiological process.
C. Diagnostic, therapeutic and surgical methods for the treatment of human or animals.
Article 2 provides that, it shall be excluded from palatability whatever may prejudice
pubic order or morality or the national security or contradict the provisions of Islamic
law.
These exceptions are compatible with the provisions of Article 27.3(a) and (b) of the TRIPS
Agreement.
3. Does your legislation, in accordance with Article 27.1 in combination with Article 31 of the
TRIPS Agreement, consider impor tation as "working" a patent (and therefore preclude compulsory
licensing, if a product is being imported)?
According to Article 15(c), import of the produce shall not be deemed a legitimate reason to
prevent the issue of the obligatory authorisation.
4. Does your legislation make the granting of a compulsory license subject to all the conditions
enumerated in Article 31 of the TRIPS Agreement?  Please cite the relevant provisions of law.
Article 15 provides that every person concerned may after the lapse of 3 years from the data
of granting the patent for an obligatory authorisat ion to exploit the invention for any of the following
reasons:
(a) Non-exploitation of the patent seriously within 3 years from the date of its granting.
(b) Stoppage of the utilisation of the invention protected by the patent for two connective
years.
(c) Request of the patent owner to contractually, authorise the exploitation of the patent
the thing, which may jeopardise establishment of industrial or commercial activities
in the Sultanate of Oman.
Article 18 of the law provides that:IP/C/W/282/Add.1
Page 3
"Compulsory licence shall be awarded only to the applicant who provides necessary
guarantees that the invention will be fully util ised to deal with the shortage, or meet the
requirements, that have lead to requesting the compulsory licence.  It is not permitted for
those who have been awarded a compulsory licence to assign the patent, or its use, to others.
The Minister may cancel the licence if the licensee violates the licence conditions, or if thereasons justifying its award have been removed.  The licensee may complain against this
decision before the committee, as stipulat ed in Article 7, and in accordance with the
conditions and regulations stipulated in the bylaws."
5. Does your legislation provide for the principle of the reversal of burden of proof in a process
patent litigation?  Please cite the relevant provisions of law.
This matter is still under study.
C. PROTECTION OF UNDISCLOSED INFORMATION
6. Please explain in detail if your legislation ensures that undisclosed test or other data
submitted by an applicant to the responsible State agency in the procedure for market authorisation ofa pharmaceutical or of an agricultural chemical product is protected against disclosure and against
unfair commercial use by a competitor, for example by prohibiting a second applicant from relying
on, or from referring to the original data of the first applicant, when applying subsequently for market
authorisation for his own product.  Does your legisl ation provide for exceptions to this? If yes, under
what conditions would such exceptions apply?  Does your legislation set a specific term of protectionfor undisclosed test or other data of the first applicant?
Article 34 of the Law on Trademarks, Descripti ons and Secrets and Protection against Unfair
Competition provides:
"Any natural person or legal entity may not disclose trade secrets in his or its possession in a
manner that is contrary to honest practice in trade.  A commercial or industrial activity shall
be considered secret if, due to its nature, it is not known, it draws its commercial value from
its confidentiality, reasonable measures have been taken to maintain its confidentiality, or it is
not easily accessible to an ordinary person having skill in the art.  Disclosure shall include
making use of information, tests or other secret information presented to the competent
authorities in order to obtain a marketing authorisation necessary for pharmaceuticals and
agricultural products containing new chemical material provided that a tangible effort was
furnished to obtain such products."
D. ENFORCEMENT
7. Please indicate remedies provided by your legislation, which constitute effective deterrents to
infringements of intellectual property rights.
A. Article 14 of the Copyright and Relate d Rights Law promulgated by the Royal
Decree No. 37/2000.
B. Article 18 of the Law on Hearing and Arbitration before the Authority for the
Settlement of Commercial Disputes pr omulgated by Royal Decree No. 32/82.
C. Article 23 of the Patent Law prom ulgated by Royal Decree No. 82/2000.
D. Article 38 of the Law on Trademarks, Indi cations and Secrets and Protection against
Unfair Competition promulgated by Royal Decree No. 38/2000.IP/C/W/282/Add.1
Page 4
E. Article 47 of the Commercial Law pr omulgated by Royal Decree No. 55/90.
8. Please describe any new initiatives that are planned to improve enforcement of intellectual
property rights in your country, particularly initiatives related to criminal enforcement.
Article 23 of the Copyright and Related Rights Law provides that whoever infringes a literary
or financial right of the owners of the related right shall be penalised with imprisonment for a term of
not more than two years or a fine of not more than  two thousand Omani Rials or by either of these two
penalties.
__________