Does Article 4(1)(a) of the Marrakesh Treaty Require Limitation to Adaptation Rights? Blind SA v Minister of Trade, Industry and Competition (CCT 320/21) [2022] ZACC 33 (21 September 2022)

Authors

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.17159/1727-3781/2024/v27i0a17202

Keywords:

Blind SA, Copyright Act, Copyright Amendment Bill, Marrakesh Treaty, accessible format copy, adaptation, reproduction

Abstract

Central to this contribution is Article 4(1)(a) of the Marrakesh Treaty, which the Constitutional Court used to limit the exclusive right of adaptation of copyright owners in the case of Blind SA v The Minister of Trade, Industry and Competition. This contribution finds that while states can add other limitations in their national laws beyond Article 4(1)(a), they can do so relying on Articles 4.3 and 12 of the Marrakesh Treaty while observing the three-step test and their other international obligations. It is, therefore, recommended for our courts to provide clear guidance on normative development, which can, in turn, assist the legislature in its troubled path to domesticate the Marrakesh Treaty ahead of the planned ratification.

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Author Biography

  • Malebakeng Forere , University of Witwatersrand

    Associate Professor, School of Law, University of the Witwatersrand, South Africa.

References

Bibliography

Literature

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Case law

Blind SA v Ministry of Trade, Industry and Competition 2021 BIP 14 (GP)

Blind SA v Minister of Trade, Industry and Competition (CCT 320/21) [2022] ZACC 33 (21 September 2022)

Legislation

Constitution of the Republic of South Africa, 1996

Copyright Act 98 of 1978

Ecuador Copyright Act in Official Journal No 149 of 14 August 1976

Performers' Protection Act 11 of 1967

Government publications

Copyright Amendment Bill [B13-2017]

Performers' Protection Amendment Bill [B24-2016]

International instruments

Berne Convention for Protection of Literary and Artistic Works (1886)

Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (2006)

International Covenant of Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (1966)

Marrakesh Treaty to Facilitate Access to Published Works for Persons Who are Blind, Visually Impaired or Otherwise Print Disabled (2013)

Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Agreement (1994)

Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties (1969)

WIPO Copyright Treaty (1996)

WIPO Performances and Phonograms Treaty (1996)

Internet sources

Anton Mostert Chair of Intellectual Property, Faculty of Law, Stellenbosch University 2018 Owen Dean https://blogs.sun.ac.za/iplaw/about/staff-members/owen-dean/ accessed 23 April 2024

Ho CM 2011 An Overview of "TRIPS-Plus" Standards https://papers.ssrn.com/abstract=1933252 accessed 18 August 2023

Hugenholtz PB and Senftleben MRF 2011 Fair Use in Europe: In Search of Flexibilities https://www.ivir.nl/publicaties/download/Fair%20Use%20Report%20PUB.pdf accessed 8 March 2023

Reid B and Ncube C 2019 Scoping Study on Access to Copyright Protected Works by Persons with Disabilities: WIPO Standing Committee on Copyrights and Related Rights Study SCCR/38/3 https://www.wipo.int/edocs/mdocs/copyright/en/sccr_38/sccr_38_3.pdf accessed 23 April 2024

Sullivan J 2006 WIPO Study on Copyright Limitations and Exceptions for Visually Impaired https://www.wipo.int/edocs/mdocs/copyright/en/sccr_15/sccr_15_7.pdf accessed 20 August 2023

The Presidency 2020 President Cyril Ramaphosa Refers Copyright and Performers' Protection Amendment Bills to Parliament https://www.gov.za/speeches/president-cyril-ramaphosa%C2%A0refers-copyright-and-performers%E2%80%99-protection-amendment-bills accessed 23 November 2023

Published

16-08-2024

Issue

Section

Articles

How to Cite

Forere , M. (2024). Does Article 4(1)(a) of the Marrakesh Treaty Require Limitation to Adaptation Rights? Blind SA v Minister of Trade, Industry and Competition (CCT 320/21) [2022] ZACC 33 (21 September 2022): . Potchefstroom Electronic Law Journal, 27, (Published on 16 August 2024) pp 1-25. https://doi.org/10.17159/1727-3781/2024/v27i0a17202

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