One of the main activities carried out by the Observatory focuses on the creation and expansion of knowledge on intellectual property protection among the wider enforcement community.
The Observatory’s knowledge building activities have served to train and increase the knowledge of thousands of judges, prosecutors, police and customs officers, market surveillance authorities and other members of the enforcement community.
These activities allow them to refresh their knowledge through constantly updated courses and seminars.

Through the Observatory, EUIPO carries out different types of knowledge-building activities aimed at different actors in the enforcement community:
Knowledge building events:
The Europol EU Serious and Organised Crime Threat Assessment (SOCTA) has identified key areas in which knowledge and training needs to be developed in relation to counterfeiting and organised crime.
EUIPO, Europol and Eurojust have joined forces to organise specific knowledge building events, concentrating on these key areas. The aim of the events is to improve understanding about fake and illicit goods, to highlight the difficulties faced by enforcement authorities, regulatory agencies, policy makers and customs, and to help reach effective responses based on current practices.
Judges’ Seminars:
The Judges' seminars, which have been organised since 2008, have already established a body of practice among senior EU judges and prosecutors who regularly deal with intellectual property and enforcement issues. The network comprises over 800 judges and prosecutors from all EU Member States and beyond, including all types and levels of jurisdiction: civil, commercial, administrative and criminal. Attendance at the seminar is by invitation, and in order to allow a free exchange of views, discussions are not public.
The seminars are, at their core, highly participative. The judges and prosecutors who attend generally return to further events. The participants receive the questions and the mock case, known as the Max Case, to be dealt with during the seminar well in advance and are required to prepare the response before the event. This preparation allows the judges to share their experiences with their peers at working sessions that take place during the event. The seminars are not training sessions but rather a series of workshops during which judges can learn from peers, and share and network with colleagues belonging to different courts and different countries.
The participants of the EUIPO Judges' Network regularly communicate with each other after the seminars finish and relay judgments and other information on their national practices back to EUIPO, continuing and enriching the practice.
IP enforcement events
The Observatory is also involved in high-level events to ensure policy makers, communicators and decision takers are fully aware of relevant issues surrounding IP.
Regional seminars
The regional seminars are aimed at building knowledge among law enforcement practitioners, such as police, customs and prosecutors, in the area of intellectual property rights infringements. These seminars are organised in different geographic regions for EU Member States and neighbouring countries.
Event | Date | Report | Other documents |
---|---|---|---|
Knowledge and Awareness Building Seminar, International Cooperation and the Role of Intermediaries | 14 - 16 March 2017 | ||
Knowledge Building Conference, Counterfeiting of Toys and Videogames | 09 - 11 November 2016 | ||
Knowledge and Awareness Building Conference, Counterfeiting of foodstuff, beverages and agricultural products | 16 - 18 March 2016 | ||
Knowledge building conference on infringements of designs protected by design law and copyright | 18 - 20 November 2015 | ||
Knowledge building conference on counterfeiting of cosmetics, perfumes and luxury goods | 03 - 05 June 2015 | ||
Knowledge building conference on infringements of intellectual property rights on the internet | 05 - 07 November 2014 | ||
Knowledge building conference on Intellectual Property Crimes in Sports | 26 - 28 March 2014 | Show | |
Knowledge building conference on counterfeit household goods and automotive parts | 04 - 06 November 2013 | Show | |
Knowledge building conference on counterfeit medicines | 26 - 28 June 2013 | ||
Knowledge building conference on counterfeit pesticides | 26 - 28 September 2012 |
Event | Date | Report |
---|---|---|
Judges’ Seminar | 19 - 20 September 2017 | |
Civil versus Criminal IPR Litigation | 11 - 17 May 2017 | |
Judges' seminar Fake labels | 07 - 08 November 2016 | |
IPR Judges' seminar Confiscation of Proceeds of Crime in the IPR Field | 03 - 04 May 2016 | |
EUIPO Judges' Seminars on Indemnification | 2008 - 2016 | |
Ninth Judges´ Symposium | 04 - 05 November 2015 | |
Limitation of Statute and Confiscation of Proceeds of Crime | 05 - 06 May 2015 | |
The Sale of Fakes through the Internet | 24 - 25 March 2015 |
Event | Date | More informationn |
---|---|---|
International Forum on IP Enforcement, Paris | 12 - 13 June 2019 | Show |
International IP Enforcement Summit, Berlin | 22 - 23 June 2017 | Show |
International IP Enforcement Summit, London | 11 - 12 June 2014 | Show |
Event | Date | Report |
---|---|---|
Regional Seminar on the Enforcement of Intellectual Property Rights, Slovakia | 09 - 11 October 2018 | |
Regional Seminar on Enforcemenet on IP Rights, Limassol | 04 - 06 April 2017 | |
Regional Seminar on Enforcement of IPR, UK | 22 - 24 November 2016 | |
Regional Seminar on Enforcement of Intellectual Property Rights, Lisbon | 24 - 26 May 2016 | |
Regional Seminar, Budapest | 11 - 13 November 2015 | |
Southern European Regional Seminar, Italy | 12 - 14 May 2015 | |
Regional Seminar for Baltic Countries, Denmark | 06 - 08 October 2015 | |
Regional Seminar, Romania | 13 - 15 May 2014 | |
Nordic Enforcement Workshop, Denmark | 18 - 20 November 2013 |
Other resources
The content of the websites listed above(texts, images, photographs, videos, logos, graphics, trade marks, icons, and any other audio-visual or audio items) may not be used without the prior approval of the right holders.
..More