Håkan Borgenhäll, a well-reputed business lawyer in intellectual property law and a partner at Vinge, has just completed his assignment as an expert in the government's public investigation, SOU 2024:4, entitled The limitations of copyright (Sw Inskränkningarna i upphovsrätten).
A major review of the limitations was last carried out 19 years ago, so this investigation aims to provide a clearer and more modern regulatory framework for the use of copyrighted works without the permission of the copyright holder.
"It has been an extensive and time-consuming exercise. The current Copyright Act is very much a patchwork and is in need of a thorough revision. But the end result in terms of the provisions on copyright limitations has essentially been very good," says Håkan Borgenhäll and continues;
"It is very valuable to receive such government assignments via the Swedish Bar Association and it is also very valuable that Vinge thereby gains in-depth knowledge of new legislation. The fact that the government invites the Swedish Bar Association to participate in these investigations is important from the point of view of, among other things, legal certainty.
The investigator, Chief Judge Anders Dereborg with Court of Appeal Judge Clara Cederberg, as well as Håkan and his expert colleagues in the investigation, have carried out a complete review of the copyright law's provisions on limitations. For example, the ability to use copyrighted works without permission in news reporting under certain conditions. Other important issues dealt with by the committee are naming and source indication, reproduction of art in the public domain, use of works in parodies and in research, etc.
The next step is to send the investigation out for consultation, which will then be used as a basis for a bill to be submitted to Parliament to adopt a new legal text.
This is Håkan Borgenhäll's third assignment as an expert in a governmental investigation. The two previous ones dealt with amendments to the Swedish Design Protection Act (SOU 2000:79 and SOU 2001:68) and amendments to the Swedish Patent Act (SOU 2013:48 and SOU 2015:41). The latter inquiry concerned adaptations of the Patent Act to the new unitary patent system and a complete revision of the entire Patent Act.
