Intellectual Property Law

Bhandari Law and Partners is one of the leading law firms in Nepal working across the full breadth of intellectual property law — patents, industrial designs, trademarks, and copyright — rather than specializing narrowly in just one corner of IP work. Nepal is a signatory to the Paris Convention for the Protection of Industrial Property, 1883, the Berne Convention for the Protection of Literary and Artistic Works, 1886, and the WTO's Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS), 1995, and is a member country of the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) — all of which shape the baseline standards Nepal's domestic IP laws are expected to meet.

 

The Legal Framework

The two core statutes governing IP rights in Nepal are the Copyright Act, 2059 (2002), which covers literary, artistic, musical, and audiovisual works and grants both economic and moral rights to creators, and the Patent, Design and Trademark Act, 2022 (1965), which covers patents, industrial designs, and trademarks and is administered by the Department of Industry. Copyright protection in Nepal doesn't require registration — it exists from the point of creation — though registration still matters practically, since it's far easier to prove ownership in a dispute when the paperwork is already on record rather than reconstructed after the fact.

 

It's worth being direct about where Nepal's IP framework shows its age. The Patent, Design and Trademark Act dates to 1965, predating most of the digital-era IP challenges businesses now actually face — counterfeit goods moving through e-commerce, cross-border grey markets (particularly significant given Nepal's open border with India), and digital piracy of copyrighted content. TRIPS and WIPO membership push Nepal's standards toward international norms, but enforcement in practice still depends heavily on active monitoring and investigation by rights holders, not automatic protection once a right is registered.

 

What We Do

 

IPR protection advisory

We advise clients on protecting their intellectual property rights in Nepal — identifying what's actually protectable, what route to register it through, and what practical steps keep that protection enforceable over time.

 

Registration and renewal

We handle registration and renewal of patents, industrial designs, and trademarks before the Department of Industry, managing the filing and prosecution process from application through to grant.

 

Franchise and technology transfer agreements

We draft and review franchise agreements, technology transfer agreements, and other IP-related commercial agreements, structuring them to protect the IP owner's rights while still making the deal commercially workable for both sides.

 

IPR infringement disputes

We represent clients in IPR infringement disputes before the Department of Industry, the High Court, and the Supreme Court of Nepal.

 

Counterfeit investigation

We assist with investigating counterfeit products in the Nepali market, building the evidentiary basis needed to support an enforcement action rather than just a complaint.

 

IPR due diligence

We prepare legal due diligence reports on IPR matters — essential groundwork before a transaction, licensing arrangement, or market entry where a client needs to know exactly what's protected and where the gaps sit.

 

Our Approach

Intellectual property only holds the value a rights holder is actually willing and able to defend. Registering a patent, design, trademark, or relying on copyright's automatic protection is the starting point, not the end of the work — our role is to make sure that protection translates into something enforceable when it actually matters, whether that's negotiating a franchise deal, structuring a technology transfer, or standing in front of a court on an infringement claim.