We are delighted to report that the Commerce and Employment department of the States of Guernsey has now sent the draft Image Rights legislation out for consultation.

The consultation period will last until 7th March 2012. We then expect the finalised legislation to be approved during the second quarter of this year.

This legislation will see Guernsey bringing in a registrable image right - a world first.

It will enable rights holders to register and exploit their images through a recognisable, formal intellectual property right. These rights will have the added benefits of being able to be dealt with in the same way as other forms of Intellectual Property rights, which means they can be easily assigned or licensed to third parties.

As an active participant in the Image Rights process, Collas Crill will continue to keep you informed on future developments in this exciting and groundbreaking area. We will be sending a further update on the Image Rights legislation in the next few days to fill you in on all the detail.

In the meantime, if you would like to see the draft legislation, you will need to contact the Guernsey Registry directly by emailing ipo@guernseyregistry.com.

If you have any questions please do not hesitate to contact Jason Romer or David Evans.