<<

>>


1. The Parties hereby establish the ACTA Committee. Each Party shall be represented on the Committee.

2. The Committee shall:

(a) review the implementation and operation of this Agreement;

(b) consider matters concerning the development of this Agreement;

(c) consider any proposed amendments to this Agreement in accordance with Article 42 (Amendments);

(d) decide, in accordance with paragraph 2 of Article 43 (Accession), upon the terms of accession to this Agreement of any Member of the WTO; and

(e) consider any other matter that may affect the implementation and operation of this Agreement.

3. The Committee may decide to:

(a) establish ad hoc committees or working groups to assist the Committee in carrying out its responsibilities under paragraph 2, or to assist a prospective Party upon its request in acceding to this Agreement in accordance with Article 43 (Accession);

(b) seek the advice of non-governmental persons or groups;

(c) make recommendations regarding the implementation and operation of this Agreement, including by endorsing best practice guidelines related thereto;

(d) share information and best practices with third parties on reducing intellectual property rights infringements, including techniques for identifying and monitoring piracy and counterfeiting; and

(e) take other actions in the exercise of its functions.

4. All decisions of the Committee shall be taken by consensus, except as the Committee may otherwise decide by consensus. The Committee shall be deemed to have acted by consensus on a matter submitted for its consideration, if no Party present at the meeting when the decision is taken formally objects to the proposed decision. English shall be the working language of the Committee and the documents supporting its work shall be in the English language.

5. The Committee shall adopt its rules and procedures within a reasonable period after the entry into force of this Agreement, and shall invite those Signatories not Parties to this Agreement to participate in the Committee's deliberations on those rules and procedures. The rules and procedures:

(a) shall address such matters as chairing and hosting meetings, and the performance of organizational duties relevant to this Agreement and its operation; and

(b) may also address such matters as granting observer status, and any other matter the Committee decides necessary for its proper operation.

6. The Committee may amend the rules and procedures.

7. Notwithstanding the provisions of paragraph 4, during the first five years following the entry into force of this Agreement, the Committee's decisions to adopt or amend the rules and procedures shall be taken by consensus of the Parties and those Signatories not Parties to this Agreement.

8. After the period specified in paragraph 7, the Committee may adopt or amend the rules and procedures upon the consensus of the Parties to this Agreement.

9. Notwithstanding the provisions of paragraph 8, the Committee may decide that the adoption or amendment of a particular rule or procedure requires the consensus of the Parties and those Signatories not Parties to this Agreement.

10. The Committee shall convene at least once every year unless the Committee decides otherwise. The first meeting of the Committee shall be held within a reasonable period after the entry into force of this Agreement.

11. For greater certainty, the Committee shall not oversee or supervise domestic or international enforcement or criminal investigations of specific intellectual property cases.

12. The Committee shall strive to avoid unnecessary duplication between its activities and other international efforts regarding the enforcement of intellectual property rights.



With a #tagcoding hashtag per article, anyone can tag content relevant to its status and implementation, and share it via social media as explained in the #tagcoding Handbook or the video #tags in support of easy information retrieval (YouTube).