Advertising Law

We handle a wide variety of legal issues in advertising law in Kenya including, but not limited to, representing clients in the following:

  • Registration of advertising companies and businesses;
  • We review advertising content and marketing programs to ensure compliance with advertising laws and regulations;
  • Advertising in regulated industries including tobacco and alcoholic beverages;
  • Consumer protection;
  • Intellectual property;
  • Celebrity endorsements, publicity and image rights;
  • E-commerce;
  • Prize promotions, sweepstakes, lotteries, competitions and contests, coupons and gift certificates, sales promotions, event management, sponsorships, product placement;
  • Licensing;
  • Defamation;
  • Invasion of privacy;
  • Drafting and enforcement of advertising contracts;
  • Mergers and acquisitions, joint ventures in the adverting industry;
  • Trade association regulation;
  • Television clearance procedures;
  • We represent clients in deceptive or misleading advertising claims;
  • Comparative advertising;
  • Infomercials, home shopping,
  • Telemarketing;
  • Guerrilla or “ambush” marketing;
  • We represent clients on competition issues in advertising, including pricing issues;
  • We assist clients in dealing with media suppliers, production companies, telemarketing services, product suppliers and ancillary marketing channels.

 

Dispute Resolution

  • Controversies between advertisers or between advertisers and agencies
  • Deceptive or misleading advertising
  • Prosecuting/Defending claims, including class actions
  • Confidential information breaches
  • Intellectual property infringements, including copyright, trademark and domain names, passing off and defamation
  • Freedom of expression and Kenya Article 46 rights.

 

Transactions

  • Advertiser-Agency contracts;
  • Drafting and reviewing Advertising Collaboration Agreements;
  • Television and film production contracts;
  • Celebrity endorsement agreements;
  • Licensing, including trademarks, logos, musical compositions and soundtracks, motion picture and television film clips, animated characters, literary works, and other entertainment properties
  • Sponsorship and events including concert promotions, product placements, commercial tie-ins and sporting events
  • National and global media buying agreements
  • Collective bargaining agreements
  • Mergers and acquisitions
  • Drafting Advertising Joint Venture Agreements

 

Brand Protection

  • Intellectual property management for trademarks, copyrights and proprietary information
  • Protection and enforcement of rights
  • Portfolio management

 

Government Regulators

  • We assist clients in their dealings with regulators including regulators in the gambling industry, alcoholic beverages industry, tobacco industry, food and drugs industry, and Kenya Postal Corporation.

 

Advertising and Intellectual Property

  • We review clients’ advertising and marketing practices before implementation to avoid negative attention and the need to retract, alter, or defend promotional material.
  • We counsel on and litigate matters involving false comparative or potentially misleading advertising, trade dress infringement—copying the packaging, product appearance, and/or colors used in marketing goods or services—business torts, and federal and state unfair competition claims.
  • We advise clients pursuing claims through industry trade associations.
  • We prepare and negotiate all types of sponsorship and endorsement agreements.