Bogdan Paduchak, First Deputy Director of the Ukrainian National Office for Intellectual Property and Innovations (UANIPIO), took part in the meeting of the European Commission’s Experts Group on Industrial Property Policy (GIPP), which took place in Brussels on February 17, 2026.
GIPP is the group of experts established by the European Commission in 2016, whose mandate was renewed in 2022. The group operates in the field of intellectual property protection, management, licensing and enforcement. GIPP’s main tasks are to provide expert support to the European Commission in the preparation of delegated acts, legislative proposals and policy initiatives, as well as to ensure coordination and cooperation between EU Member State institutions and the European Commission on industrial property and enforcement issues.
It should be mentioned that the European Commission granted Ukraine observer status in the GIPP following a bilateral meeting between Ukraine and the European Commission as part of the official screening of the level of alignment of Ukrainian legislation with the EU acquis under negotiating Chapter 7 “Intellectual Property Law,” which took place in December 2024. During the screening, the Ukrainian side raised the issue of expanding practical participation in relevant EU expert formats as part of the request for accelerated integration in the IP field.
Participation in the GIPP meeting is a practical implementation of this request, provided for in Ukraine’s Negotiating position under Chapter 7 “Intellectual Property Law,” in particular with regard to acquiring observer status in the GIPP. In addition, it contributes to the implementation of the tasks set out in the draft National Program for the Adaptation of the Ukrainian Legislation to the Legislation of the European Union (EU acquis) regarding ensuring the cooperation and participation of national experts in the work of relevant EU expert formats.
The agenda of the GIPP meeting was devoted to discussing the implementation of European Commission Recommendation (EU) 2024/915 of March 18, 2024 on measures to combat counterfeiting and enhance the enforcement of intellectual property rights.
The European Commission and EUIPO presented the results of monitoring the implementation of this Recommendation by Member States, outlined trends, best practices and issues. The impact, potential benefits and risks of including IP information in the Digital Product Passport were also discussed.
A separate part of the meeting was devoted to presenting the results of the research on the implementation of EU Directive 2004/48/EC on the enforcement of intellectual property rights (IPRED), in particular with regard to the principle of proportionality, dynamic injunctions, the balance between the right to information and data protection and procedures for the seizure of goods infringing IP rights.
Commenting on Ukraine’s participation in the meeting, Bogdan Paduchak noted:
“It is extremely crucial for us that, although Ukraine is not yet a EU Member State, we are already implementing a significant part of the approaches reflected in the Recommendation. We are strengthening cooperation between customs and law enforcement agencies and rightsholders, improving coordination mechanisms and strengthening our capacity to combat infringements in the digital environment. At the same time, we are well aware that there is still a lot of work ahead of us.”
The Ministry of Economy and UANIPIO continue to work actively to align national legislation with the EU acquis and develop institutional capacity in the field of law enforcement. The EU-funded EU4IP project “Strengthening Intellectual Property Rights in Armenia, Moldova and Ukraine” plays an important role in this regard, providing expert support, analyzing the alignment of draft laws with EU acquis and strengthening cooperation with European partners.
Participation in GIPP is another step in Ukraine’s integration into the EU Internal Market in the field of intellectual property and confirms the consistency of the State’s efforts to develop a modern and effective system for the protection and enforcement of intellectual property rights in alignment with European Union standards.
Photo: Bogdan Paduchak’s Facebook page
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