Toronto, ON – October 7, 2004 LAWFUEL – Law news, legal, securities, attorney, law firm news– CSA International, a leading certification and testing organization, and Baker & McKenzie, a leading global law firm with 69 offices worldwide, today officially announced a strategic alliance to help combat national and international trade in products bearing counterfeit CSA International certification marks.
“Today’s announcement further reflects our commitment to an aggressive program to detect, expose and punish any unauthorized use of CSA International’s registered trademarks, including all CSA certification marks,” says RJ Falconi, Vice President, General Counsel and Corporate Secretary, CSA Group. “This strategic alliance with Baker & McKenzie will enable us to work closely with their Global Intellectual Property Practice and knowledgeable lawyers in jurisdictions where products with counterfeit CSA International certification marks are likely to be produced, marketed or exported.”
Baker & McKenzie will be assisting CSA International from their Toronto offices and their offices around the world through the global coordination of foreign anti-counterfeiting projects and related enforcement of CSA’s intellectual property in regions of Asia, as well as in areas of Eastern and Western Europe. “We are pleased to build this alliance to further CSA’s commitment to anti-counterfeiting,” said Christopher Aide, Baker & McKenzie’s Global Coordinator for CSA. “Baker & McKenzie’s global reach perfectly complements CSA’s objectives and facilitates coordinated anti-counterfeiting enforcement in many jurisdictions simultaneously.”
This effort will be coordinated by Baker & McKenzie attorneys Christopher Aide and Linda Melnychuk of the Toronto office, with assistance from Paul Rawlinson and Jenni Rutter of the London office, Chiang Ling Li and Joe Simone of the Hong Kong office and Eugene Arievich of the Moscow office. The cooperation will consist of legal representation of CSA’s interests and integrating CSA with organizations such as the Quality Brands Protection Committee (“QBPC”) of the China Association of Enterprises with Foreign Investment.
CSA International has been active in battling counterfeiting for several years. The organization’s initiatives include training programs to assist retailers in understanding product approval marks and detect counterfeit marks, publication of a White Paper on Counterfeiting, enhanced marketplace surveillance of various commercial outlets, and working closely on investigations with regulatory and legal authorities. A key element to CSA’s global anti-counterfeiting program has been to forge alliances with stakeholders, including industry groups, governments and law firms so that all may benefit from each representative’s expertise and experience.
CSA International’s global coordination of anti-counterfeiting efforts will be further enhanced through the use of Baker & McKenzie’s legal tool called Borderwatch, an on-line tool that offers easy access to up-to-date information about protection of intellectual property rights through customs procedures in 55 major countries.
In recent years CSA has investigated reports of counterfeit CSA marks being found on circuit breakers used in electrical panels, computer power supply units, and safety footwear. In addition to safety risks such as potentially fatal shock and fire hazards posed by counterfeit goods, it is estimated that trademark counterfeiting costs North America more than US$400 billion annually.
About CSA International
CSA International is a provider of product testing and certification services for electrical, mechanical, plumbing, gas and a variety of other products. Recognized in the U.S., Canada and around the world, CSA’s marks appear on billions of products worldwide. CSA International is a division of CSA Group, which also includes CSA, a developer of standards and codes, and QMI, a leading North American management systems registrar. CSA International can be found online at www.csa-international.org.
About Baker & McKenzie
Since 1949, Baker & McKenzie has provided sophisticated advice and legal services to many of the world’s most dynamic and successful organizations. We are a network of more than 3,100 locally qualified, internationally experienced lawyers in 69 offices in 38 countries. We have the knowledge, experience and resources to deliver the broad scope of quality legal services clients require to respond to both international and local needs. Ours is a diverse culture with a global mindset. We are citizens of over 60 countries, admitted to practice in nearly 250 jurisdictions, and speak more than 70 languages. Baker & McKenzie can be found at www.bakernet.com.
Baker & McKenzie’s Global Intellectual Property group is a leading source of legal advice on cross-border IP issues with 367 IP practitioners worldwide.
