AI, Deepfakes and the Model: What Nigerian Agencies Need in Their Contracts Now
Consider the following scenario. A Nigerian model, represented by a mother agency, participates in a campaign shoot for a major fashion brand. The shoot is properly contracted. The usage rights are specified. The fee is agreed and paid. The campaign runs for the agreed period and then, under the terms of the booking contract, the […]
What Nigerian Modelling Agencies Need to Know About the Nigeria Data Protection Act 2023
A modelling agency is, among other things, a data processing operation. Before a model ever walks into a studio or appears on a runway, the agency has collected their full name, date of birth, nationality, residential address, passport details, physical measurements, bank account information, and a substantial archive of photographic images. During the course of […]
Why Your Model Contract is Not Protecting You: Five Things Nigerian Modelling Agencies Get Wrong
By Bernice Ofunore Asein, Esq. | Managing Partner, Cardinal Counsel | Founder, Fashion Law Institute Africa There is a particular kind of optimism that characterises the early days of a modelling agency in Nigeria. The director has a vision. The models are talented. The international connections are being built, sometimes at significant personal cost. A […]
Cardinal Counsel’s Bernice Asein Speaks to BBC on Nigeria’s Fashion Industry Labour Crisis
Cardinal Counsel’s Managing Partner, Bernice Ofunre Asein, was featured in a BBC investigation into labour conditions across Nigeria’s fashion and modelling industry, published in November 2025, following that year’s Lagos Fashion Week. The BBC’s reporting examined a string of concerns raised by models and designers, including unpaid or delayed wages, contested agency fees, poor working […]
The Complete Guide to Design Rights: Protecting Your Creations in Nigeria
Intellectual Property In Nigeria, design rights are a key form of intellectual property (IP) protection for fashion designers, product creators, and innovators. Protecting your designs helps prevent copycats, preserves your brand’s reputation, and allows you to commercially exploit your creations. This guide provides a complete overview of design rights, including registration types, protection scope, enforcement, […]
Unregistered Design Rights in the Fashion Industry: What Nigerian Designers Need to Know
Intellectual Property In the fashion industry, originality and creativity are everything. But not every design can be formally registered under industrial design laws in Nigeria. This is where unregistered design rights (UDRs) come into play. UDRs provide automatic protection for certain aspects of a design, helping designers prevent copying and safeguard their work, even without […]
How Do Trade Mark Classes Work? A Guide for Nigerian Businesses
When registering a trade mark, understanding how trade mark classes work is crucial. The scope of protection offered by a trade mark is limited to the specific goods or services it covers. This limitation allows identical or similar marks to coexist on the register as long as they apply to different goods or services—a concept managed through trade mark classes.
Design Rights in Clothing: A Guide for Nigerian Fashion Brands
In Nigeria, the protection of fashion designs is an essential part of safeguarding your brand and creative output. Designers can protect their creations through Industrial Design Registration under the Nigerian Copyright Commission and Trademarks, Patents and Designs framework, as well as through copyright.
The Riyadh Design Law Treaty (RDLT) – What You Should Know
The Riyadh Design Law Treaty (RDLT), adopted on 22 November 2024 under the auspices of the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO), represents one of the most significant developments in global design protection in recent years. Its core aim is to simplify, harmonize, and modernize international design law procedures, making it easier for creators, designers, and businesses to secure and enforce design rights across multiple jurisdictions.
How Artists Can Utilise Copyright and Designs in Nigeria
In Nigeria, copyright and design rights are the primary intellectual property (IP) tools available to protect artistic works and creative output. An artist who understands and strategically uses these rights is better positioned to safeguard their work, commercialise it, and enforce their interests when infringement occurs.