Introduction

The value of knowledge-based assets, such as information relating to formulas and technical data, has increased dramatically in recent years. It is now more important than tangible or physical assets, and corporations need to properly manage these valuable assets in order to maintain their competitiveness in the marketplace. At the same time, proper control over these assets interfaces with other regulations concerning, inter alia, competition and public interest. This chapter critically examines the Qatari Law No. 5 of 2005 on the Protection of Trade Secrets and its reflection in the World Trade Organisation's Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPs Agreement). As the first legislation to exclusively deal with the topic in the country, its scope and contents are of tremendous interest and significance to those who would like to protect their assets through trade secrets law instead of patent law. References are also made to laws that are concerned with the protection of trade secrets in the other Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries.

Qatar has been a member of the World Trade Organization (WTO) for almost two decades. As a result, it is required to observe and respect the minimum standards of intellectual property protection outlined in the Organization's TRIPs Agreement). In the discussion below, an overview of the TRIPs Agreement and of the protection of trade secrets (undisclosed information) as set out in Article 39 of this Agreement is presented. This is followed by a detailed and critical analysis of the Qatari Law on the Protection of Trade Secrets. Throughout the chapter, references are made to laws regulating the protection of trade secrets in other GCC countries. Laws concerning the protection of trade secrets or undisclosed information in the other GCC countries have been issued to comply with the requirements of the TRIPs Agreement. Because of this fact, most of the provisions of these laws are generally similar to or even identical to the Qatari Law.

The TRIPs Agreement: An Overview

The TRIPs Agreement is the cornerstone of the current system of international intellectual property protection. The Agreement is based upon certain international instruments in the field of intellectual property rights, namely the Paris Convention on the Protection of Industrial Property (1883), the Berne Convention for the Protection of Literary and Artistic Works (1886), the Rome Convention for the Protection of Performers, Producers of Phonograms and Broadcasting Organizations (1961), as well as the Washington Treaty on Intellectual Property in Respect of Integrated Circuits (adopted on 26 May 1989, but not yet entered into force).