Dr. Marcus Goffe
Attorney-at-Law, Partner at Goffe Law and legal consultant
Dr. Marcus Goffe is an Attorney-at-Law, Partner at Goffe Law and legal consultant who has 24 years of experience in several areas of law, including intellectual property (IP) law, entertainment and media law, criminal law, human rights law, indigenous rights law and cannabis law. Dr. Goffe is also a law lecturer, community rights activist and environmental defender.
Dr. Goffe has a Bachelor of Laws (LLB) degree from the University of the West Indies and a Legal Education Certificate from the Norman Manley Law School and is called to the Bar in Jamaica. Dr. Goffe also has a Master of Laws degree (LLM) in Intellectual Property Law and a Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) degree in Commercial Law from Queen Mary, University of London. Dr. Goffe’s PhD thesis focused on the protection of intellectual property, traditional knowledge and traditional cultural expressions in the Caribbean Community (CARICOM). Dr. Goffe was Deputy Director/Legal Counsel of the Jamaica Intellectual Property Office (JIPO) from 2021-2022 and Manager of the Trade Marks, Designs and Geographical Indications Directorate at JIPO from 2011-2016. He has expertise in all areas of intellectual property including trademarks, geographical indications, patents, designs, copyright, plant breeder’s rights, image/personality rights, trade secrets and traditional knowledge.
Over the last twelve years, Dr. Goffe has written papers, delivered presentations and conducted seminars, workshops and training sessions on all areas of intellectual property, nationally, regionally and internationally, including for local producer/stakeholder groups in Jamaica, the Government of Jamaica, CARICOM, the Caribbean Forum (CARIFORUM) group of states, the Caribbean Development Bank (CDB), the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB), the European Union Intellectual Property Office (EUIPO), the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO), the International Union for the Protection of New Varieties of Plants (UPOV) and the World Trade Organization (WTO). Dr. Goffe was the focal point for JIPO for the Caribbean Intellectual Property and Innovation (carIPI) Project and Geographical Indications Mentorship Programme with the EUIPO and CARIFORUM States and has worked extensively with the Swiss Federal Intellectual Property Institute on the protection of geographical indications, country names and geographical names of national significance. Dr. Goffe was also the conceptualiser and Project Coordinator for the groundbreaking 2019-2022 IDB and CDB funded JIPO Project which pioneered IP valuation and collateralization in the Caribbean.
Dr. Goffe is a founding member of the Rastafari and Grassroots Ganja Association (RAGGA), an advisor to the Rastafari Mansions and Organizations (RMO); advisor to the Yamaye Council of Indigenous Leaders (YCOIL) in Jamaica; is regularly consulted by individuals (local and foreign) and Maroon and Rastafari community-based organizations in relation to ganja rights and licences; and was an active member of several Cannabis Taskforce committees in Jamaica in 2021-2022. Dr. Goffe has participated in numerous panel discussions and delivered many presentations related to the cannabis industries. As a law lecturer, Dr. Goffe has taught Intellectual Property Law, Intellectual Property Management, Sports Law, Entertainment and Media Law, Commercial Law and Business Law, among others. He is currently Lecturer in the Faculty of Law at the University of the West Indies, Mona