The Thai Food and Drug Administration (FDA), which is responsible for providing support in coordinating and monitoring cosmetic products in the market, announced that the requirements of the ASEAN Harmonized Cosmetic Regulation Scheme will be fully implemented by the beginning of 2011. Among the requirements, certain cosmetic products may need to be reclassified and re-registered, as described in this article.

Since Vietnam’s entry to the WTO, member countries have grumbled about Vietnam’s seemingly toothless enforcement of IP rights. In recent years, however, Vietnam has made a strong commitment to encouraging more foreign investment and protection of IP is at the foundation of this cause. A recent decision issued by the Copyright Office of Vietnam highlights the country’s commitment to protecting IPRs and may offer some peace of mind to both foreign and domestic businesses.

:)    :P    :(    :D    :-O  These symbols are not a basic series of punctuation marks and letters. They are emoticons, a portmanteau word composed of emotion and icon, signifying those iconic typographical manifestations of various emotions. Prevalently used for a decade in e-mails and text messages due to their expressive brevity, emoticons are now employed by businesses seeking to capture the attention of Gen Y, or the Net Generation, and to trademark them for commercial purposes.

The June 2010 World Economic Forum Report Enabling Trade in the Greater ASEAN Region ranked 125 economies based on market access, border administration, transport and communication infrastructure, and overall business environment.  According to the report, one of the main factors for lower rankings of certain Asian countries lies with difficulties in moving goods around.

In the last half decade, many tragic events have taken place due to Thailand’s ongoing political discord. The recent May riots resulted in incalculable damages, both public and private. Naturally, as Thai law imposes liability on those who directly commit violent acts, those directly responsible and the masterminds of the riots should be held liable for the damages caused. However, this raises questions as to the circumstances under which these instigators or masterminds are criminally and/or civilly liable. This article examines the relevant provisions under Thai law.

Presented in a Q&A format, this chapter provides a broad overview of Thai patent law. The chapter covers issues such as prosecution and opposition, enforcement, licensing, and current developments.

This Tilleke & Gibbins Viewpoint article, written by David Lyman (Chairman & Chief Values Officer), provides a review of the current state of corruption in Thailand. The article gives an overview of petty corruption and grand corruption, highlighted by recent prominent examples. The article then discusses recent progress made by the government and the importance of ratifying the United Nations Convention Against Corruption.

There has been an emerging movement in Thailand for some form of medical malpractice legislation. Various professional organizations (representing healthcare professionals) and NGOs (representing patients) have proposed draft legislation; there have now been a total of seven draft bills governing medical malpractice. The current draft garnered a great deal of attention from both local and international media outlets in July and August 2010, as healthcare experts forewarned of dire consequences that could result from the Bill.