This is an informal case summary prepared for the purposes of facilitating exchange during the 2026 WIPO IP Judges Forum.
Session 9: Specialized Procedural Rules for IP Disputes
High Court of Brazzaville, Congo [2025]: Ministère Public and Société Inter Trade SARL v Houssein Adellahi, Aliou Niangadou, Aboudoulaye Teme, and Abdul Karim Haidara, Judgment No. 179
Date of judgment: December 29, 2025
Issuing authority: High Court of Brazzaville
Level of the issuing authority: First Instance
Type of procedure: Judicial (Criminal)
Subject matter: Trademarks; IP Regulatory Body
Plaintiff/Appellant: Ministère Public; Société Inter Trade SARL
Defendant/Respondent: Houssein Adellahi; Aliou Niangadou; Aboudoulaye Teme; Abdul Karim Haidara
Keywords: Trademark infringement; Enforceability against third parties, African intellectual property organization (OAPI); OAPI special register of trademarks; Standing; Exclusive distribution agreement
Basic facts: Société Inter Trade SARL initiated direct criminal proceedings against four store managers (Houssein Adellahi, Aliou Niangadou, Aboudoulaye Teme, and Abdul Karim Haidara) operating in the Poto-poto and Total markets in Brazzaville, accusing them of unlawfully selling counterfeit products bearing the registered trademarks “Rapid Clair”, “Talangai”, and “Moby bébé”. Société Inter Trade SARL brought the action, acting in the capacity of owner of the said trademarks. However, official records from the African Intellectual Property Organization (OAPI) revealed that the registered owner of the trademarks was Mr. Francis Nana Djomou (General Manager of Laboratoires BIOPHARMA S.A.). Société Inter Trade SARL held an exclusive representation and distribution agreement for these products in Congo, but this agreement had never been recorded in the Special Register of Trademarks at OAPI nor published in the Official Bulletin.
Held: The High Court of Brazzaville declared the criminal prosecution inadmissible. The Court ruled that under Article 1(2°) of the Code of Criminal Procedure, criminal action can only be initiated by a party that has personally suffered direct harm caused by the alleged offense. Under Article 31 of Annex III of the Bangui Agreement, acts transferring rights or granting license/distribution rights are only enforceable against third parties if they have been duly recorded in the OAPI Special Register of Trademarks. Given that Société Inter Trade SARL failed to register its distribution agreement, the contract was not enforceable against third parties. Consequently, Société Inter Trade SARL could not claim legal ownership or standing based on direct harm, rendering its direct summons inadmissible. Société Inter Trade SARL was then ordered to pay the costs of the proceedings (100,000 Central African Francs).
Relevant holdings in relation to specialized procedural rules for intellectual property (IP) disputes:
· Enforceability of Trademark Contracts against Third Parties: License or exclusive distribution contracts regarding registered trademarks must be recorded in the OAPI Special Register of Trademarks to be enforceable against third parties in judicial proceedings.
· Procedural Standing in Criminal IP Enforcement: A licensee or distributor whose contract is not recorded in the official IP register lacks legal standing to directly initiate criminal prosecution for trademark infringement, as they cannot legally establish direct damage in the capacity of owner or enforceable right holder.
· Coordination of regional and national legal frameworks: The decision illustrates how a court in an OAPI member state applies the regional OAPI IP framework in conjunction with a national legal framework. In this case, the Court applied, as binding regional law, the provisions of the Bangui Agreement governing the registration, transfer, and enforceability of trademark rights within OAPI member states. At the same time, the Court applied the Congolese Code of Criminal Procedure to determine whether the plaintiff had standing to initiate criminal proceedings for trademark infringement.
Relevant legislation: Articles 30 and 31 of Annex III of the Bangui Agreement (OAPI) (TRT/OA002/004); Articles 1(2°), 344, 408, 410, and 744 of the Congolese Code of Criminal Procedure.