THE Nigerian Copyright Commission (NCC) is set to embark on aggressive mentorship and capacity building programmes to build more Intellectual Property (IP) lawyers with requisite skills to address the challenges of the digital age.
Director-General, NCC, Dr. John O. Asein, stated this during a courtesy visit to the Nigerian Law School (NLS), Bwari, Abuja on Wednesday 12th April 2023.
Addressing the management of NLS, the Director-General, NCC, noted that Nigeria’s pride today is in her creative prowess which accounts for its thriving film and music industries and therefore underscores the need for lawyers to hone their skills, so as to adequately service the sectors. He observed that beyond the older traditional fields, lawyers should take advantage of the global shift to IP related law practice.
Speaking on the need for law students to be abreast of other subjects outside of their syllabus, he noted that the visit would enable the Commission and the NLS organise sensitisation programmes on IP in all campuses of the School.
Speaking at the interactive session with students, Dr. Asein explained how the phenomenal growth in the creative sector would impact on legal practice in Nigeria. “When people think of Nigeria in the creative world, they think of Nollywood and its music. These industries need lawyers who are knowledgeable in copyright”, he said. He therefore urged lawyers to be more acquainted with the rudiments of the business and law that relate to the creative industries.
In his welcome address, the Director-General, Nigerian Law School, Professor Isa Hayatu Ciroma, SAN, expressed gratitude to the NCC for the visit and called on lawyers to be intentional about deepening their awareness of the IP field especially the opportunities that abound in the copyright sector. Prof. Ciroma assured the NCC that the engagement on IP will be sustained and extended to all other campuses of the Law School.
Similarly, the Director and Head of Academics, NLS, Mr. Sam Osamolu, noted during the interactive session that the visit would expose the students to emerging fields of practice that are globally relevant.
The DG, NCC used the opportunity of the visit to tutor the students on the rudiments of copyright and introduce the WIPO Distance Learning programme as a study tool. He also invited the students to subscribe to the Women Empowering Women in IP (We Win IP) initiative of the Commission which was to commemorate the 2023 World IP Day and to encourage more women in the use of IP.
He expressed his appreciation to the management of NLS for the warm reception during the visit and assured that the Commission will follow up with practical training sessions on copyright and other related aspects of IP.
Amos Abutu
For: Director-General
