The protection of the breeder's rights regarding the new plant varieties

The breeder?s right, is an intellectual property right recognized on plant varieties. The reason to recognize a breeder?s right on plant varieties is to promote the breeding activities. The reason of the breeding activity is to obtain high quality plant varieties, resistant to diseases and having a high degree of productivity. In Turkey, the breeder?s right on plant varieties is regulated by the Law dated 8 January 2004 and numbered 5042. The Law is based on the UPOV Convention (International Convention on the Protection of New Plant Varieties) and the European Union Council Regulation regarding the Community Breeder?s Rights. In order for a breeder?s right to be granted, the plant variety has to be new, distinct, uniform, stable and has to have a suitable variety denomination. The breeder?s right provide to the right holder the power of production, propagation, preparation for propagation, exposition for sale, sale or marketing by other methods, exportation, importation and storage of the variety. The agricultural exemption which is one of the restriction circumstances of these powers has an important place in the regulations concerning the protection of the breeder?s right. The breeder?s right can be subject to legal transactions. In case of an infringement of the right, the right holder, in order to protect the right can proceed with the civil or criminal actions regulated in the Law. This intellectual property law regulation whose practice is developing day by day in Turkey is becoming more important with the increasing number of breeder?s right registration applications and the membership of Turkey to the UPOV on 18 November 2007.