TERMS OF INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY RIGHTS IN THE CONTENTS OF THE MARRIAGE AGREEMENT

Abstract

The article addresses the study of the legal regulation of conditions on intellectual property rights in the content of the marriage contract, including the participation of a foreign element and  taking into account the modern trends of the genesis of family relations in the law of Ukraine and certain foreign countries; the latest trends in the regulation of family relations are  highlighted and the patterns of their further development normative consolidation in family law of Ukraine and the formulation of conclusions as well as proposals aiming at harmonizing national legislation with EU law are outlined.

In recent years, in Ukraine, the question of ownership of intellectual property rights to objects acquired or created during the marriage has arisen at the level of judicial practice. At the same time, there are no direct norms in the Civil and Family Codes of Ukraine indicating that rights to intellectual property belong to the common property of spouses.

The approach recognized by US jurisprudence assumes that not only income received from intellectual property rights (copyrights, royalties, payments under the contract on the transfer of rights, etc.), but also the objects of intellectual property rights created or acquired during marriage. Another mode of ownership of intellectual property objects may be stipulated in the marriage contract or other agreement concluded by the spouses.

Based on the study of the peculiarities of the legal regulation intellectual property rights in the content of the marriage contract in the law and judicial practice of foreign countries and the law of Ukraine, it was established that the legislation of Ukraine does not directly refer objects of intellectual property rights created during marriage to the joint property of the spouses (on in contrast to the income received from the realization of intellectual property rights). However, the parties to a marriage contract concluded with the participation of a foreign element may subordinate its content to the law of the state, which recognizes the regime of joint property of the spouses for the results of intellectual and creative activity created during the marriage. To regulate their rights and obligations under the marriage contract, the parties may decide for the personal law of the spouses or the law of the state in which one of the spouses has a habitual residence. Therefore, there is a possibility to extend the relations with the participation of a foreign element to the legal regime of joint property of spouses to objects of intellectual property rights acquired during marriage.