Copyright law of Panama

The copyright law of Panama is primarily based on 1994 legislation, known as Law 15. The history of Panamanian intellectual property legislation dates to the 19th century. Only recently has copyright in Panama became seriously enforced, with past international criticism focusing on insufficient effort to enforce intellectual property laws. A new 2012 law has attracted concerns in the opposite direction, with many criticising it for being too draconian.

Some provisions for copyright in Panama date to 1826, and Panama has been a party to a number of international copyright treaties throughout the 20th century. The modern copyright law in Panama is based on a 1994 law. The Panamanian National Assembly in August 1994 passed a comprehensive copyright bill (Law 15), based on a World Intellectual Property Organization model. The law modernizes copyright protection in Panama, provides for payment of royalties, facilitates the prosecution of copyright violators, protects computer software, and makes copyright infringement a felony, with a fine up to $20,000, handed by the National Office of Copyright at the Panamanian Ministry of Education. The law also recognizes the existence of moral rights. The length of duration of copyright is 50 years after the author's death, or the publication of an anonymous work.

The Law 23 of 1996 created the Intellectual Property Interdisciplinary Commission, which oversees many copyright-related cases in Panama.

In September 2012 Panama passed a new copyright law (Bill 510). The bill is a result of negotiations in the Panama–United States Trade Promotion Agreement. The new law gives the Panamanian copyright office (General Department of Copyright, DGDA) the power to fine those found to have violated copyright through file-sharing, and hand out fines of $100,000 ($200,000 on second offense); the offenders have fifteen days to defend themselves before being arrested. The fines would be kept by the copyright office, which has the right to use them for salary bonuses, with none of them passed to the copyright holders. The copyright infringers however may still be separately sued by the copyright holder. If found guilty, the copyright infringers also have to pay for a press announcement where they plead guilty of Internet piracy. The 2012 has also limited the applications of fair use in Panama.

...
Wikipedia