Intellectual Property Offences – Which Articles Cover This Field
Criminal liability in the field of intellectual property is defined by two articles of the Criminal Code of Georgia: Article 189 – infringement of the right of the copyright and related-rights holder and of the database maker – and Article 196 – unlawful use of a trademark (service mark) or other commercial designation. The first protects the interests of authors and rights holders; the second protects the interests of the legitimate owners of trademarks and commercial designations.
In practice these two norms cover different situations. Article 189 concerns plagiarism – the appropriation of authorship or coercion to co-authorship – and the unauthorized reproduction of a work, phonogram, videogram or database, as well as the distribution of copies. Article 196 concerns the unlawful use of another's trademark or appellation of origin and the placing of marked goods into circulation. If a case has been opened against you under these articles, the sanctions of every part of both articles are set out separately below.