K. Canada
K1. Current copyright law provides criminal remedies for infringement of copyright, including to knowingly make, sell, hire, distribute or display an infringing work on a commercial scale, or to make or possess a plate for the purpose of making infringing copies. Penalties include fines up to C$1 million and imprisonment up to 5 years.
K2. Criminal action for copyright infringement is taken by the Federal Enforcement Section of the Commercial Crime Unit of the federal Royal Canadian Mounted Police. In 1998 the RCMP produced an interim copyright enforcement policy which will focus criminal litigation on commercial infringement by importers, manufacturers and distributors.
K3. Before the RCMP will take action it is necessary for the claimant to register its copyright with the Copyright Office and then provide a certified copy of the registration. The RCMP will need to be satisfied that they can identity unauthorised or counterfeit reproductions of the work. The RCMP will therefore need a sample of the owner's legitimate product plus a sample of the infringing product.
K4. In practice the RCMP will act promptly and it appears that the Police will seize the counterfeit goods within a matter of 1 to 2 weeks of being provided with all the necessary information. In recent times the RCMP has become more active, and rights owners now co-operate with the Police to take criminal proceedings for copyright infringement.
K5. Criminal provisions for misuse of trade marks are part of the Criminal Code, and are enforced by provincial authorities. These laws provide that everyone commits an offence who, with intent to deceive or defraud the public or any person, whether ascertained or not, forges a trade mark. Forgery comprises the making or reproducing in any manner a trade mark or a mark so nearly resembling it as to be calculated to deceive, and also falsifying a genuine trade mark.
K6. Everyone commits an offence who, with intent to deceive or defraud the public or any person, whether ascertained or not, passes off other wares or services as and for those ordered or required, or makes use of a false description in association wares or services.
K7. Further, everyone commits an offence who makes, has in his possession or disposes of a die, block, machine or other instrument, designed or intended to be used in forging a trade mark, and everyone commits an offence who, with intent to deceive or defraud, defaces a trade mark or fills any bottle or syphon that bears the trade mark of another with a beverage with the purpose of sale or traffic.
K8. Punishment for the foregoing trade mark offences is imprisonment for a term not exceeding 2 years. The practical enforcement of these provisions varies from province to province.
K9. Canadian law provides for seizure of counterfeit goods which are imported.
K10. Civil proceedings are also available under the Canadian Copyright and Trade Mark Statutes.
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