The Intellectual Property Office of the Philippines (IPOPHL) will be mounting the 2019 edition of the Mandatory Continuing Legal Education (MCLE) on 18-22 March  at the Radisson Blu Hotel in Cebu City in order to reach out to IP practitioners in the Visayas.

“Scaling up our IP Education and Awareness drive is at the forefront of IPOPHL’s agenda. The MCLE Program’s first run outside of Luzon will be an essential learning opportunity for lawyers and non-lawyers alike. The curriculum for this lecture series is a diverse offering of updates on IP legislation, strategic innovation on IP core processes & appeals, commerce-related concepts of IP,” said Director General Josephine Santiago.

Intellectual property processes, particularly in application and appeals, as well as the special rules and procedures on IP cases will also be discussed.

Intellectual property is a game-changer of scientific innovation and creativity, and has been entrenched as a component of economic growth in the Philippine Development Plan particularly in chapters on advancing science, technology, and innovation & expanding economic opportunities for industry and services.

The area of intellectual property is a new and exciting field in legal practice that remains to be fully tapped by a new generation of lawyers. With every sector, from manufacturing to banking, now being infused with technology, expertise in the field of intellectual property will complement law firms’ existing competencies in high-demand practice areas such as information technology and cyber law .

Intellectual property has increasingly been a salient feature of modern free trade agreements, both bilateral and multilateral ones, putting it in a prime intersection with trade law.

The lecture series will tackle topics such as the impact of new legislation ( the Competition Law and the Data Privacy Act) on intellectual property, as well as enforcing one’s IP rights.

For business groups and commerce associations, capitalizing on companies’ intellectual
property assets by way of licensing and franchise will also be discussed.

Members of the academe and R&D institutions will benefit from learning about drafting
technology transfer agreements, in the case that their technology are being prepped for
commercialization.

The 5-day program presents a rare opportunity for these sectors to learn the centrality of IP in these different fields of knowledge.

The IPOPHL MCLE 2019 curriculum will be taught by a roster of seasoned and
internationally-recognized intellectual property lawyers and professors.

To recall, IPOPHL held the 2018 MCLE program in Bonifacio Global City. The 2018 MCLE Program drew in nearly a hundred participants from across government, academe, and the private sector.

For interested participants, you may inquire and call (02) 238-6300 local 1007 or 2201, or send an email to mcle@ipophil.gov.ph.♦

Date of release: 7 March 2019