The States of Guernsey has passed new legislation which will see the island bring into being the world’s first registrable image right – a move which will revolutionalise celebrities’ ability to protect - and profit from -the asset of their recognisability.

Put simply, image rights allow celebrities to control the commercial use of their identity and the images associated with them, including distinctive expressions, characteristics or attributes. The rights can then be structured and bequeathed like any other kind of asset - indeed, WealthBriefing understands that there has been interest in Guernsey image rights from the families of celebrities who are already dead.

The Guernsey image rights registry will open for registrations on 3 December and will be publicly accessible.

The planned change to Guernsey’s intellectual property regime has been extensively covered by this publication (click here for a feature fully explaining the new legislation and its implications).