Intellectual property rights are protected by the granting of patents and the registration of trademarks (including service marks, collective marks and certification marks). In addition, the law protects certain types of work as defined in the Copyright Act.

The primary right conferred by a patent is that, subject to certain exceptions, no other person shall have the right to produce, possess, process or sell a protected product or apply a patented process. The Patent Act provides criminal penalties for the infringement of patents.

Anyone registered as the owner of a trademark has the exclusive right to use the trademark and the right to initiate legal proceedings to either prevent or stop others from using the mark, or to seek damages for using the mark. The Trademark Act provides criminal penalties for the infringement of trademark.

• Literary work: books, writings, publications, journals, including all types of lectures, speeches and computer programs
• Dramatic work including dancing and shows performed through stories
• Artistic work including drawings, sketches, paintings, sculptures, photographic, illustrative work, maps
• Musical work including lyrics and melodies
• Sound recordings Audio/video works, including music videos
• Sound and video broadcasts
• Cinematic works, including features