Government bodies

Swiss Federal Institute of Intellectual Property

The Swiss Federal Institute of Intellectual Property was founded in Bern in 1888. It is the Federal Agency for intellectual property matters but has its own legal personality and is independent of the Swiss Federal budget. Its primary role is as a first point of contact for customers who need industrial property rights. The site provides background information about patents, trademarks, designs and copyright, with links to further details. Forms for completion and submission are available to download in Word and PDF formats.

Human Tissue Authority

The Human Tissue Authority (HTA) is a watchdog which licences and regulates organisations that store and use human tissue from both the living and deceased. Its website includes sections on licensing and inspections; information about body, tissue and organ donation; legislation, policies and codes of practice, including links to the Human Tissue Act 2004 and the Human Tissue (Scotland) Act 2006; HTA publications and HTA consultations.

Legimonaco

Official law website for the Principality of Monaco, provided by the Ministère d’Etat. The legislation section comprises the Monaco Constitution; the Civil Code, Penal Code, Commercial Code and other codes; it also has individual laws from 1920 onwards. Draft laws and recently passed laws are provided under the heading “Actualité législative”.

The DoJ & CD

Website of the Department of Justice & Constitutional Development, South Africa. Provides a detailed description of the individual South African courts and their position in the court hierarchy with a link to the court’s own site if available. A section on legislation gives access to Acts and Regulations relating to the work of the department which have been passed since 1994. There are additional sections relating to Bills, Draft regulations, Rules and Practice directions. The 1996 South African Constitution is also available (updated to 16th amendment, 2010).

South African Labour Courts

Website of the South African Labour Court and Labour Appeal Court. The South African Labour Court has the same status as a high court. Further appeals can be made to the Labour Appeal Court. Links are available to the texts of relevant statutes, regulations and also to the practice directions of both courts. Access is given to full text judgments from 1996. A separate RSS feed allows users to check on the most recent decisions and news from the court.

Parliament of the Republic of Lithuania

Official website of the parliament (Seimas) of the Lithuanian Republic. Contains detailed information regarding the history, structure, operation and workings of the Parliament, including the various parliamentary officers and sub committees, parliamentary documents and press releases, and public and international relations information. Contains a searchable database of full text English translations of Lithuanian legislation. Also contains English translations of all relevant EU legislation. The site can be viewed in Lithuanian and English.

State patent bureau of the Republic of Lithuania

Official website of the State patent bureau of the Republic of Lithuania (Lietuvos Respublikos valstybinis patentu). The Bureau is an executive body of the Republic of Lithuania, State budgetary agency, responsible for the legal protection of industrial property (inventions, designs, trademarks and service marks, semiconductor product topographies) in Lithuania. The website makes available the Bureau’s Official Gazette and annual reports, together with databases of Lithuanian trademarks, designs and patents.

Prime Minister's Office of Bangladesh

Official website of the Prime Minister of Bangladesh. The site provides information about the current Prime Minister including speeches, budgets and the most recent election manifesto. There is also information on the structure and activities of the Prime Minister's Office with links to the various departments within the PMO. Some documents are written in Bengali, but the majority of information is available in English.

The Government of the Kingdom of Swaziland

Provides an introduction to the Kingdom and Government of Swaziland both for national and overseas users. This includes drop-down links to pages for all the government departments with an outline of policies/services offered and background information. Another part focuses on a brief history of the King of Swaziland and his current role. There are sections for local citizens, businesses and visiting tourists. Access is given in PDF format to a 2012 budget speech, speech from the Throne and government press statement.

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