Macau

While nearby Hong Kong has been riled by protests over China’s application of the “one country, two systems” model of governance, Macau has remained calm, its populace largely pro-Beijing. As this publication was going to press in September, news broke over further economic integration between Macau and the mainland with plans to create a special economic zone that focuses on develop-ment and manufacturing of semiconductors.

The “Guangdong-Macau In-Depth Cooperation Zone” will be located on Hengqin Island, part of mainland China, and part of which has been leased to Ma-cau. Current plans will also see the zone promote innovation in AI, the internet of things, FinTech and health services, and be jointly administered by Macau and Guangdong province.

It is unclear where this blurring of lines will lead, but such integration should lead to fabulous opportunities down the road for Macau’s relatively modest legal community – and likely for those in Hong Kong and mainland China, as well.

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The team at BN Intellectual Property Services encompasses a wide range of services, in particular the registration and protection of trademarks, patents and domain names. The firm also provides legal support in the area of advertising and consumer law, and in the area of consumer law, it provides assistance in regards to the sector of food and beverages, in consumption conflicts, and e-commerce. Man-aging partner Bruno Nunes, who handles IP, gaming and corporate and commercial work, is a key contact. The firm works closely with its sister firm, BN Lawyers.

C&C Lawyers & Notaries provides legal advice and services on a wide range of legal issues for both domestic and international clients. On top of general advice on IP issues, the firm’s practice includes registration and IP portfolio maintenance; IP enforcement and protection; licensing and franchising; anti-counterfeiting and customs actions. Partner Lu Zhao leads the IP practice and acts as the top liaison for the firm’s Chinese-speaking clients. The firm also has offices in Portugal, East Timor and Cabo Verde. The firm was named Asia IP Firm of the Year for Macau in 2020.

DSL Lawyers has developed a strong and highly experienced global IP prac-tice. Some of its lawyers qualify as pioneers in the field of IP law, being responsible for establishing the largest portfolio of IP clients in Macau. Its practice includes trademarks, patents, utility models, designs and copyright. The firm’s co-founding partner Carlos D. Simões heads the firm’s IP and property practices.

Established in 2003, FCLaw Lawyers & Private Notaries’ IP practice mainly focuses on patent and trademark work. The firm endeavours to manage and mit-igate the risk of maximizing return from IP assets for the benefit of its clients. It provides assistance in all procedures for IP registration and protection, as well as formulation of strategies in order to safeguard and defend IPRs.

Inventa International specializes in IP protection, including trademarks, patents, designs copyright and domain names, in Portugal and African countries including Nigeria, Mozambique and Angola. It advises clients on national and international searches and reg-istrations, licenses and commercial transactions, enforcement, litiga-tion and maintenance of IP rights.

Jorge Neto Valente, estab-lished 30 years ago, is one of the largest law offices in Macau. The firm has extensive and long expe-rience advising clients on IP mat-ters as well as commercial issues such as international and domestic transactions and other corporate services. Ricardo Morgado Igreja is a key IP contact.

Macao Victory Intellectual Property Agent specializes in registration of trademark, invention patent, utility model and design. Other common services that the firm offers are trademark searches, trademark oppositions, trademark as-signments and trademark renewals.

Manuela António Lawyers and Notaries has solid experience in IP. The firm was responsible for the registration of a considerable number of prestigious trade-marks in Macau, as well as patents, business names, logos and registered designs. It has also acted in several court cases involving disputes on intellectual property rights, particularly on the right to register trademarks in Macau, with a large num-ber of its clients based in other jurisdictions. Associates Tiago Assunção and Daniel da Silva e Melo are key contacts for IP matters.

General practice MdME Lawyers was only established in 2006, but it has quickly grown to include some of the most-experi-enced and most-active IP lawyers in Macau. Its clients encompass key corporations operating in Macau, covering diverse sectors such as banking, insurance, fi-nance, gaming, real estate, en-ergy, construction, infrastruc-ture, retail, pharmaceuticals and telecommunication. Partner João Encarnação, head of the IP team, has advised and assisted on pros-ecution of thousands of applications for trademark, design, patent and other IP rights in Macau and overseas.

Nuno Simões & Associados – Lawyers and Notary offers full-service IP coverage in a wide range of categories, from consumer goods to software, elec-tronics, medical devices or manufacturing. Its practice includes all aspects of patent, trademark and copyright, including litigation, due diligence and opin-ions, and licensing and technology transfer. Amongst others, Nuno Simões is highly respected and has great experience in both IP related commercial and litigation cases.

An international law firm with offices in Macau SAR and in Portugal, Riqui-to Advogados provides legal services to clients in many industries, with a special focus on corporate clients. Riquito specializes in managing and assisting com-plex and large transactions, disputes and projects that involve leading compa-nies and is also involved in cross-border operations. The firm has a distinct and strong IP and Gaming practice in line with Macau as a gaming hub. Founder and managing partner since 2005 João Nuno Riquito is a key contact.

RPmacau is a full-service IP firm able to provide assistance on the full spectrum of matters including managing IP portfolios, determining the scope of IP, advising on registrability, acquisition and exploit value of IP as well as en-suring their protection. The firm handles both contentious and non-contentious matters including availability searches, registration, licensing, anti-counterfeit-ing, enforcement, and litigation.

Sá Carneiro Pinheiro Torres & Associados was established in late 2001, and today boasts significant experience in IP and other fields. Clients range from individuals to large corporations and other institutional clients, both local and international, including clients from Hong Kong, China, other countries in Asia, Europe, the US, Australia and elsewhere. In addition to IP, the firm advises on gaming, banking and finance, corporate and business, civil and tax law.