NIGERIA LAW AND PRACTICE Contributed by: Chinyerugo Ugoji, Tiwalola Osazuwa, Rebecca Ebokpo, Jibrin Dasun, Peretimi Akinmodun, Onyinyechi Chima and Princess Otah, ǼLEX
with colour – if it is intended by the creator to be used as a model or pattern to be multiplied by an industrial process and is not intended solely to obtain a technical result. It basically relates to the physical appearance or aesthetic features of a product, such as its shape, pattern or orna - mentation, and does not extend to the technical or functional features of a product. An industrial design can be registered in Nigeria if it is new and is not contrary to public order or morality. An industrial design will not be con - sidered new if it has been made available to the public before the date of application for registra - tion, unless the creator of the design can prove that they had no knowledge that it had been made so available. The right to registration of an industrial design is vested in the person who is the first to file or to validly claim a foreign priority for, or an applica - tion for registration of, the design, whether or not they are the true creator. The true creator is, however, entitled to be named in the application. An application to register an industrial design is to be made to the Registrar of Patents and Designs and accompanied by a specimen of the design or a photographic or graphic representa - tion of the design and an indication of the kind of product for which the design will be used. The registration of an industrial design is effec - tive in the first instance for five years from the date of the application for registration and can be renewed for two further consecutive five-year periods, each upon payment of the prescribed fees. The registration of an industrial design gives the creator the exclusive right to exploit their design. The creator’s rights, however, extend only to
acts done for industrial or commercial purposes. A creator whose rights have been infringed may institute a civil action against the infringer and claim reliefs such as damages, an injunction and an account of profits. 7.4 Copyright Copyright is a branch of intellectual property that protects the creator of an original work. It grants the creator exclusive legal rights to control the use, reproduction, distribution and adaptation of the work for a certain period. Under the Copyright Act, 2022, musical, liter - ary and artistic works, audiovisual works, sound recordings and broadcasts enjoy copyright pro - tection. In Nigeria, registration is not required for copy - right protection; protection arises automatically upon the creation of an eligible work. However, in the case of literary, musical and artistic works, the Copyright Act requires that some effort be expended to give the work an original charac - ter, and that it be fixed in a definite medium of expression. Although registration is not man - datory, the Nigerian Copyright Commission has established a voluntary notification system through which authors may formally notify it of their works. The Copyright Act also recognises moral rights, which include the right to be identified as the creator of a work and the right to object to any modification or misuse that harms the author’s reputation. These rights are personal to the author, subsist for the duration of the copyright, and may only be transferred upon the author’s death by testamentary disposition or by opera - tion of law.
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