VZCZCXYZ0032
OO RUEHWEB

DE RUEHQT #0555 0671940
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
O 081940Z MAR 07
FM AMEMBASSY QUITO
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 6511
INFO RUEHBO/AMEMBASSY BOGOTA PRIORITY 6514
RUEHCV/AMEMBASSY CARACAS PRIORITY 2436
RUEHLP/AMEMBASSY LA PAZ MAR 0484
RUEHPE/AMEMBASSY LIMA PRIORITY 1491
RUEHGL/AMCONSUL GUAYAQUIL PRIORITY 2025
RUCPDOC/DEPT OF COMMERCE WASHDC PRIORITY

UNCLAS QUITO 000555 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SENSITIVE 
SIPDIS 
 
USTR FOR JENNIFER CHOE GROVES 
STATE FOR EB/TPP/IPE JENNIFER BOGER 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: KIPR ETRD ECON EC
 
SUBJECT:  ECUADOR 2007 SPECIAL 301 UPDATE 
 
REF: QUITO 404 
 
¶1.  (SBU) This is an update to post's submission on Ecuador for the 
Special 301 review (reftel).  The head of the Ecuadorian 
Intellectual Property Institute (IEPI), Cesar Davila, had reported 
that the GOE's proposed 2007 budget included funds to establish 
specialized IP courts (as required by Ecuador's 1998 intellectual 
property law).  He also noted the funds would most likely be used to 
create tribunals in the major cities of Quito, Guayaquil, and 
Cuenca.  However, post has since discovered that the council that 
would create these specialized courts did not receive its full 
budget request and will likely not have the funds to create said 
courts. 
 
¶2.  (SBU) The Consejo de la Juridicatura is the office that would be 
responsible for setting up specialized IP courts in Ecuador.  It 
reportedly requested USD 336 million for its 2007 budget.  However, 
in the end it only received USD 136 million for the 2007 budget, a 
mere three percent increase from the previous year that will largely 
be eaten up by inflation adjustments to salaries.  In a meeting with 
post's commercial attache, Executive Director of the Consejo Olmedo 
Castro explained that the Consejo's first level priorities (in order 
of importance) are family courts, labor courts, and further training 
for judges in oral administration (required by the Constitution but 
not yet fully implemented).  IPR courts, while important, fall into 
the second level of priorities, and with such a small budget 
increase Castro lamented that he does not expect to have enough 
money to even cover the Consejo's first level priorities. 
 
JEWELL