Wait... JPJ Was Sued for Copyright Infringement? A Familiar Story for the Creative Industry
- IP Gennesis
- 2 hours ago
- 7 min read
When news broke that the High Court had ordered the Road Transport Department (JPJ) and its Director-General to pay RM40,000 in damages and RM25,000 in costs for copyright infringement, many Malaysians were surprised.
Copyright disputes are usually associated with books, films, music or software. So what does copyright infringement have to do with a government agency and vehicle registration plates?
Yet, it happened.
More importantly, it is another example of a problem that many businesses and creative professionals encounter far more often than people realise.
What Happened in the JPJ Copyright Case?
According to news reports from FMT and MalayMail, the matter began in 2023 when Hasan Azhari Hashim, the programme director of Ilham Madani Sdn Bhd, submitted a proposal seeking collaboration of a Special Serial Vehicle Registration Number MADANI 1 to MADANI 9999 to the Prime Minister.
The proposal, however, did not proceed. Like countless business proposals submitted every day, it appeared that the idea had simply reached a dead end.
About a year later, however, JPJ launched the MADANI special registration number series for public bidding. Hasan believed that his proposal had been used without his permission and commenced legal proceedings against JPJ and its Director-General.
The High Court ultimately ruled in Hasan's favour, awarding RM40,000 in damages and RM25,000 in costs for copyright infringement.
As with any reported case, the court's full reasoning will only become clearer once the written grounds of judgment are released. However, for many business owners, the legal debate is not the most interesting part of the story.
A Familiar Story for Designers, Agencies and Consultants
The facts surrounding the JPJ case sound surprisingly familiar to many people in the creative industry.
A branding agency spends weeks developing a new visual identity for a prospective client, often without charging any fees. The proposal is eventually rejected.
Months later, something remarkably similar appears in the market.
At this point, many creative professionals feel exploited and betrayed. They believe their creative work has been copied, yet many feel there is little they can do. Others may understand that they have legal rights, but they are simply too busy running their businesses and earning a living to pursue a lengthy legal dispute.
That is why the JPJ case caught my attention.
Not because JPJ happened to be a government department.
Nor because the court awarded RM40,000 in damages.
Rather, because it raises a practical question that almost every designer, marketing agency and creative professional has asked at some point in their career.
How can I better protect my ideas before presenting them to a potential client?
How Can You Protect Your Ideas Before Pitching Them?
The good news is that there are many ways to protect your ideas.
The challenge is that the method should not be used in isolation. Instead, they should be considered strategically as part of a broader intellectual property protection (IP) strategy.
Strategic intellectual property protection is a good place to start. However, it is more than about Copyright registration, Copyright Voluntary Notification or filing IP applications.
Some people immediately think about copyright protection. While copyright is certainly part of the solution, it is only one piece of the puzzle.
The most effective approach is to look at IP protection holistically. Long before any dispute arises, businesses should already be thinking about:
Confidentiality
IP ownership
Proper record-keeping and documentary evidence
These measures work together to strengthen your overall intellectual property strategy and place your business in a much stronger position if a dispute ever arises.
Confidentiality
One of the simplest ways to reduce risk is to think carefully about what is being shared and when it is being shared.
If a proposal contains genuinely confidential information, you should consider whether a Non-Disclosure Agreement (NDA) is appropriate before the meeting takes place.
An NDA does not prevent every dispute, nor is it suitable for every pitching session or meeting. In some situations, it may not be practical to ask every prospective client to sign an NDA before an introductory discussion, as doing so may discourage genuine business opportunities.
What is an NDA?
An NDA, also known as Confidentiality Agreement, is a legally binding contract under which one or both parties agree not to disclose, share or misuse confidential information.
Think of it as a legally enforceable "please don't leak my secrets" agreement.
Click here to read LAWENCO's blog: 3 Essential Tips to Use an NDA to Protect Your Business.
However, where a proposal contains your graphical or artistic works or proprietary know-how that gives your business a competitive advantage, an NDA can become an important first layer of protection.
Unlike copyright, which protects qualifying creative works, an NDA protects confidential information by creating contractual obligations governing how that information may be used or disclosed.
One Step in the JPJ Case Received Very Little Attention
There was another important step that Hasan took in the JPJ case, although it received very little media attention.
Long before legal proceedings were commenced, Hasan had already made a Voluntary Notification of Copyright with MYIPO in relation to his proposal.
This strategic step helped establish strong documentary evidence in support of his copyright claim.
What is a Voluntary Notification of Copyright?
Sections 26A and 26B of the Copyright Act 1987 introduced a system allowing copyright owners to voluntarily notify and deposit their works with MYIPO.
Once the Voluntary Notification of Copyright is accepted, the copyright owner is issued a certificate, which constitutes prima facie evidence of the matters recorded in the Copyright Register.
What does prima facie evidence mean?
It simply means that the notification may still be challenged in court, and the court remains free to consider all the evidence before reaching its final decision.
The certificate does not guarantee success in a copyright infringement claim.
Rather, the Voluntary Notification of Copyright provides an official record that existed before the dispute arose. Depending on the circumstances, it may become an important piece of evidence when the court is asked to determine issues such as authorship, copyright ownership or the history of the work.
Seen from that perspective, Hasan's decision to make a Voluntary Notification of Copyright before commencing legal proceedings becomes much easier to understand.
It strengthened the documentary evidence supporting his copyright ownership long before litigation was ever contemplated.
Interested in Copyright Registration or a Voluntary Notification of Copyright in Malaysia? Click here to read our guide:
Should Every Business Make a Voluntary Notification of Copyright?
Not necessarily.
For many day-to-day business documents, making a Voluntary Notification of Copyright may not be commercially justified.
For example, if your business produces countless news articles, videos on daily basis, brochures or routine marketing materials every year, making a Voluntary Notification of Copyright for every document may sound impractical.
However, there are situations where businesses should consider it more seriously.
If you have invested substantial time and resources in creating valuable intellectual property—such as software source code, technical manuals, training materials, architectural drawings, music, videos or creative works that are likely to be reused over a long period—a Voluntary Notification of Copyright may be worth considering as part of your overall intellectual property strategy.
The key point is that a Voluntary Notification of Copyright should never be viewed in isolation.
Like an NDA, it is simply another tool that can help strengthen your overall copyright protection strategy.
Good Record-Keeping Is Often Overlooked
There is another practical step that many creative professionals rarely think about until a dispute arises.
Keep good records.
It may sound obvious, but in practice many businesses fail to retain early drafts, proposal versions or presentation materials once a project has ended. Months or even years later, when questions arise about who created a particular work or when it was first developed, reconstructing that history can become surprisingly difficult.
Simple habits can make a significant difference.
Retain earlier drafts rather than constantly overwriting files.
Keep email correspondence relating to the development of the proposal.
Store presentation slides, design concepts and supporting documents in an organised project folder.
These documents may never be needed.
However, if a dispute does arise, they can help establish a clear timeline showing how the work evolved and when it was created.
Protect Your Ideas Strategically
When the headlines first appeared, many people saw the JPJ case as an unusual dispute involving vehicle registration plates and copyright law.
I see it rather differently.
To me, it is a reminder of a situation that quietly plays out every day among designers, agencies and creative professionals.
Creators work tirelessly to develop proposals in the hope of winning new business opportunities. Sometimes, those proposals are rejected. Occasionally, they later discover that something remarkably similar has entered the market.
Most of those stories never reach the courtroom.
Fewer still make the headlines.
The JPJ case should therefore not be viewed merely as another copyright infringement case.
Instead, it should serve as a timely reminder that in today's knowledge economy, ideas are often among a business's most valuable assets. Like any valuable asset, they deserve to be protected with the same care and attention as every other part of the business.
Whether you're pitching a new product, presenting a creative concept, or designing a new brand, don't leave your intellectual property to chance.
At IP Gennesis, we help businesses build practical intellectual property protection strategies—from Copyright Registration, Voluntary Notification of Copyright, trade marks and patents to NDAs, Non-Disclosure Agreements and commercial agreements—so you can share your ideas with greater confidence.
You focus on innovation. We'll help protect what makes your business different.
Let's build your intellectual property strategy before problems arise.
Written by,
Registered Trademark, Patent and Design Agent
LL.B (HONS), CLP
Advocate & Solicitor
Disclaimer
This article is intended for general informational and educational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice.
If you require IP or legal advice, you should seek professional legal advice tailored to your specific circumstances.
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