THE CONCEPT AND FIELDS OF INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY LAW: A MARK OF WEALTH IN NIGERIAN ECONOMY

Abstract

The growth and development of Intellectual Property law has assumed a worldwide dimension to the extent that its growing importance has become a subject of discourse among countries, in the protection of individauls and group intellectual activities. Countries take special interest in the development and protection of intellectual Property Rights (IPR) for some of these obvious reasons; to give legal expressions to the moral and economic works of creators in their endeavour, to put up their creative minds for the benefit of society, to protect society in lawful use of such creations, this may result to further creations, to promote creativity as a deliberate act of government policy and finally to enhance and encourage fair trading or competition with the aim to contribute to economic and social development of the Country2 All over the world, people are been born with one endowment or the other. As people are endowed, so are Families, Villages, Towns, States, Nations and Corporate bodies. It is this endowment that creates wealth or otherwise, for whoever that is so endowed. This endowment comes in the nature of Allied Rights, Copyrights, Patents, Trademarks among others, when perfected and all these are called Intellectual Property and economic development of most countries of the world3. The methodology employed for this work is doctrinal method of research which involves the use of primary sources of law such as the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria 1999 (as amended), Copyright Act 2022, etc. This work also examined secondary sources such as internet materials, Law Journals, Articles and Textbooks of renowned authors and Lecture Notebooks of some selected lecturers. The study also identified the various kinds of Intellectual Property Acts and ‘who creates’ and also identified the processses of investing in Intellectual Property. it also stated now more than ever that Intellectual Property is an important part of any country’s mark of wealth, whether developed or developing, whether civilised or uncivilised whether in Africa or any continent of world. It is more obvious in Nigeria especially, judging from the entertainment industry, wherein it has become the highest source of both employment and income. Intellectual Property covers a wide spectrum of activities of intellectual endeavour; the list of which is not exhaustive. It is however narrowed to Patent, Copyright, Industrial Designs, Trademarks, and to some extent Trade Secrets or Confidential Information.