PUERTO RICO Law and Practice Contributed by: Dianette Rivera-Melendez, Oreste Ramos, Maria Trelles-Hernandez and Rosangela Sanfilippo, Pietrantoni Mendez & Alvarez LLC
11. Intellectual Property and Data Protection 11.1 Intellectual Property Considerations for Approval of FDI As a US jurisdiction, Puerto Rico is generally subject to the same laws, rules and regulations regarding intel - lectual property that apply more broadly in the USA. 11.2 Intellectual Property Protections Puerto Rico has a double layer of intellectual property protection. As part of the USA, it is subject to federal laws on patents, copyrights and trade marks, among others. As a state-like jurisdiction within the USA, it has its own complementary regime of protection for trade marks, moral rights and trade secrets (but not patents, which are only regulated at the federal lev - el). Local laws and regulations are modelled on, and similar to, the federal counterparts and can provide additional benefits. 11.3 Data Protection and Privacy Considerations Puerto Rico lacks a comprehensive data protection law or a government body responsible for supervising the collection, use and dissemination of personal data of individuals, except for what is provided under spe - cific and limited statutes and regulations. In addition to FTC enforcement and the federal laws that govern the collection of personal information in certain sec - tors, the relevant Puerto Rican data protection laws and regulations include: • Act No 185 of 27 August 2024 (known as the Chil - dren and Youth Cyber Privacy Protection Act);
• Act No 38 of 3 May 2016 (known as the Law to Prohibit Requesting Personal Information in Trans - actions with Credit or Debit Cards); • Act No 234 of 19 December 2014 (known as the Law for the Disposal of Personal Information of Consumers); • Act No 39 of 24 January 2012 (known as the Pri - vacy Policy Notification Act); • Act No 111 of 7 September 2005 (known as the Citizen Information on Data Banks Security Act); • Act No 210 of 28 August 2003 (known as the Tele - marketing Fraud Prevention Act); • Regulation No 9158 promulgated by the Depart - ment of Consumer Affairs on 6 February 2020 (known as the Commercial Practices Regulation); • Regulation No 8568 to Implement the Publication of the Privacy Policy in the Management of Per - sonal and Private Data of Citizens, as compiled in Puerto Rico, promulgated by the Puerto Rican Department of Consumer Affairs on 27 February 2015; • Regulation No 7479 promulgated by the Telecom - munications Regulatory Board of Puerto Rico on 12 March 2012 (known as the Regulation on the Registry of Persons who do Not Want Advertise - ments Via Phone); and • Regulation No 7376 promulgated by the Depart - ment of Consumer Affairs on 25 June 2007 (known as the Citizen Information on Data Banks’ Security Regulation). Because of the nature of these laws and regulations, they may have extraterritorial scope. Penalties under these laws and regulations vary, but include civil pen - alties levied on a per-violation basis. Enforcement is still evolving and varies depending on the law or regu - lation at issue.
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