Article 17 of the Saudi Geographical Indications Law

This article sets out the duty to cooperate with the inspectors and gives the Authority a means of carrying out its decisions.

First: duties of the places to be inspected

The officials and employees there must:

• Enable the inspectors to do their work.
• Provide all the facilities they request.
• Provide the information and documents they request.

The duty falls on the officials and the employees together, so it is not limited to the owner or manager of the establishment.

Second: calling on the competent bodies

The Authority may, when needed, request the assistance of the competent bodies to carry out any decision issued against the violator.

These inspectors are the ones Article 16 provides will detect violations of the provisions of the Law and the Regulations, named by a decision of the Authority's board of directors, with law-enforcement capacity.

It is followed by Article 18, which assigns to the Public Prosecution the investigation and prosecution of the criminal case for violations of the Law and the Regulations before the competent court. Anyone subjected to an inspection who sees a problem with it should consult a lawyer specializing in intellectual property.