Economic research shows that small businesses are the primary driver of job creation in the United States. Yet, the capacity of American small businesses to create jobs is at risk. American firms compete and grow by supplying products and services that consumers demand, and by internationalising their businesses through licensing, franchising, or exporting. For many small companies, patent protection prevents competitors from simply copying their innovations, and aids in attracting investor capital needed to grow, build market share, and create jobs. The aim of this book is to show how the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, in coordination with other Federal departments and agencies, can best support businesses with international patent protection. Moreover, upon its signing in 2011, the Leahy-Smith America Invents Act (AIA) substantially overhauled U.S. patent law. Included in AIA was the expansion of the prior user rights defense to infringement and broadening the classes of patents that are eligible for the new limited prior user rights defense. (Here, prior user rights, is a defense to patent infringement afforded to a party that was commercially using, or engaged in substantial preparations for commercial use of, an invention later patented by another party). In the debate about the impact of an expanded prior user rights defense on the patent system and innovation more generally, the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office produced a report detailing its findings and recommendations on the operation of prior user rights in the industrialised world, which is discussed further in this book.

The United States, Germany, and Japan constitute the three most significant patent systems, but there is considerable variation in procedure and jurisprudence between them. A comparison of these systems for patent enforcement can illuminate historical pathways and contemporary conduits to address contemporary challenges and encourage the adoption of new legal ideas. This book provides a comprehensive guide to the extent of patent protection, validity challenges, enforcement procedures, and infringement remedies in these three major jurisdictions. By examining the major provisions of patent statutes and court decisions in these markets, it explores fundamental patent theories and principles, evaluates current systems, and proposes best practice for patent enforcement in developed, emerging, and frontier markets. Comparative analysis and historical jurisprudence of the three core paradigms in patent enforcement will to help readers to develop a more nuanced understanding of current systems and how a legal innovation in one jurisdiction is adopted in others. Authored by a team of academics and experienced patent practitioners, it provides invaluable first-hand experience and insightful discussion of patent jurisprudence that will be of great interest to academics, policy-makers and practitioners alike.

The United Kingdom's Intellectual Property Office commissioned two consultants to undertake an international comparison of approaches to online copyright enforcement. The aims and objectives of the research were to establish the range of different approaches currently being adopted around the world to enforce copyright in the online environment; and the strengths and weaknesses of different approaches and to what extent enforcement approaches are perceived to be working to reduce infringement levels. The countries chosen for inclusion in the research were as follows: United Kingdom, United States, Canada, France, the Netherlands, Spain, Italy, Brazil, and South Korea. This book discusses the final report on the international comparison of approaches to online copyright infringement. It also provides the 2014 out-of-cycle review of notorious markets and examines safe harbor for online service providers.

International developments since the mid-1990s have signalled an awareness of the importance and validity of traditional knowledge and cultural property. The adoption of the Convention on Biological Diversity, and the establishment of the WIPO Intergovernmental Committee on Intellectual Property and Genetic Resources, Traditional Knowledge and Folklore demonstrate an emerging trend towards the recognition of the rights of communities and the importance of culture in shaping international law and policy. This book examines how developments to protect collectively held knowledge transpose to circumstances which may not meet the usually understood criteria of what is considered to be an indigenous or traditional group. This includes communally derived cultural products which have emerged out of communities and subsequently formed a part of the national or popular culture. The book considers the steel pan of Trinidad and Tobago, punta rock music from Belize, Brazilian capoeira, and the cajon of Peru as key cases studies of this. By exploring the impact of past and recent international developments to protect traditional knowledge, Sharon Le Gall highlights a category of cultural signifiers which lies outside the scope of intellectual property protection, as well as the protection proposed for traditional knowledge and advocated for intangible cultural property. The book proposes a reinterpretation of Joseph Raz's interest theory of group rights in order to accommodate the rights advocated for collectively derived cultural signifiers on the basis of their value as symbols of identity. In doing so, Le Gall offers an original account of how those signifiers, which may not be described as exclusively 'traditional' or 'indigenous' and held in ways which are not 'traditional' or 'customary', may be accommodated in emerging traditional knowledge laws.

Intellectual property rights (IPR) are legal rights granted by governments to encourage innovation and creative output by ensuring that creators reap the benefits of their inventions or works. They may take forms such as patents, trade secrets, copyrights, trademarks, or geographical indications. Congress has constitutional responsibility for legislating and overseeing IPR and international trade policy. Responsibility for developing IPR policy, engaging in IPR-related international negotiations, and enforcing IPR laws cuts across multiple U.S. government agencies. This book provides background on IPR and discusses the role of U.S. international trade policy in enhancing IPR protection and enforcement abroad. This book also describes Customs and Border Protection's (CBP) processes for enforcing exclusion orders; and assesses CBP's management of its enforcement process at ports of entry.

Intestate Succession is the second volume in the Comparative Succession Law series which examines the principles of succession law from a comparative and historical perspective. This volume discusses the rules which apply where a person dies either without leaving a valid will, or leaving a will which fails to dispose of all of the person's assets. Among the questions considered are the following: What is the nature of the rules for the disposal of the deceased's assets? Are they mechanical or is there an element of discretion? Are particular types of property dealt with in particular ways? Is there entitlement to individual assets (as opposed to money)? Do the rules operate in a parentelic system or a system of some other kind? Are spouses treated more favourably than children? What provision is made for extra-marital children, for adopted children, for step-children? Does cohabitation give rise to entitlement? How are same-sex couples treated? Broader questions also arise of a historical and comparative nature. Where, for example, do the rules in intestate succession come from in particular legal systems? Have they been influenced by the rules in other countries? How are the rules explained and how are they justified? To what extent have they changed over time? What are the long-term trends? And finally, are the rules satisfactory, and is there pressure for their reform? As in the first volume, this book will focus on Europe and on countries which have been influenced by the European experience such as Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, the United States of America, Quebec, and the countries of Latin America. Further chapters are devoted to Islamic Law and Nordic law. Opening with a discussion on Roman law and concluding with an assessment of the overall development of the law in the countries surveyed, this book will provide a wider reflection on the nature and purpose of the law of intestate succession.

Following several years of legislative discussion concerning patent reform, the Congress enacted P.L. 112-29, signed into law on 16 September 2011. The Leahy-Smith America Invents Act, or "AIA", made significant changes to the patent system. This book discusses the changes made as well was key developments and issues for further consideration in the patent system.

What type of right is a property right? How are items of property classified for legal purposes? In this revised edition of Personal Property Law, Michael Bridge provides answers to these fundamental questions of property law. His critical analysis includes new material on insolvency, in particular the anti-deprivation principle and the pari passu rule, as well as comprehensive accounts of recent case law (OBG v Allan, Yearworth, and Datastream,) and statutory developments. Widely considered to be the best short introduction to English personal property law, Bridge constructs an authoritative and systematic summary of this complex field for readers approaching the subject for the first time. It focuses on the acquisition, loss, transfer, and protection of interests in personal property law, and specific topics include: ownership and possession; treatment of the separate contributions of the common law and equity to modern personal property law; discussion of modes of transfer; the means of protecting property interests; the resolution of disputes concerning title to personal property; the grant of security interests, and the issues arising out of the transformation and mixing of tangible personal property.

What type of right is a property right? How are items of property classified for legal purposes? In this revised edition of Personal Property Law, Michael Bridge provides answers to these fundamental questions of property law. His critical analysis includes new material on insolvency, in particular the anti-deprivation principle and the pari passu rule, as well as comprehensive accounts of recent case law (OBG v Allan, Yearworth, and Datastream,) and statutory developments. Widely considered to be the best short introduction to English personal property law, Bridge constructs an authoritative and systematic summary of this complex field for readers approaching the subject for the first time. It focuses on the acquisition, loss, transfer, and protection of interests in personal property law, and specific topics include: ownership and possession; treatment of the separate contributions of the common law and equity to modern personal property law; discussion of modes of transfer; the means of protecting property interests; the resolution of disputes concerning title to personal property; the grant of security interests, and the issues arising out of the transformation and mixing of tangible personal property.

The book provides analysis of the principal rules of trust law which control the exercise of powers and discretions by trustees. The primary focus is on the principle known as "the Rule in Re Hastings-Bass", and this is considered alongside the doctrines of fraud on a power and mistake. This is the first book-length treatment focussed on this specific aspect of trust law, and in particular the first on the Rule in Re Hastings-Bass, which is the subject of much professional and academic interest especially following consideration by the Supreme Court in Pitt v Holt and Futter v Futter [2013] UKSC 26. Whilst considering Pitt and the Rule in Re Hastings-Bass alongside mistake and fraud on a power, the book also explains how these doctrines interact, and how the law regulates trustee decision-making as a whole. It sets out examples and considers extensive practical problems, allowing the reader to understand not only the core trust law rules, but also the broader consequences of those rules which arise in real cases. This aspect of trust law is of great practical importance for practitioners as it arises frequently in the context of trust litigation, and in advising trustees and beneficiaries of their rights and obligations. The newly settled state of the law after Pitt will encourage reliance on the Re Hastings-Bass and mistake rules by practitioners in challenges to trustees' conduct and decisions. This book equips all involved with the key principles and arguments in this area.

This book is about fiduciary law's influence on the financial economy's environmental performance, focusing on how the law affects responsible investing and considering possible legal reforms to shift financial markets closer towards sustainability. Fiduciary law governs how trustees, fund managers or other custodians administer the investment portfolios owned by beneficiaries. Written for a diverse audience, not just legal scholars, the book examines in a multi-jurisdictional context an array of philosophical, institutional and economic issues that have shaped the movement for responsible investing and its legal framework. Fiduciary law has acquired greater influence in the financial economy in tandem with the extraordinary recent growth of institutional funds such as pension plans and insurance company portfolios. While the fiduciary prejudice against responsible investing has somewhat waned in recent years, owing mainly to reinterpretations of fiduciary and trust law, significant barriers remain. This book advances the notion of 'nature's trust' to metaphorically signal how fiduciary responsibility should accommodate society's dependence on long-term environmental well-being. Financial institutions, managing vast investment portfolios on behalf of millions of beneficiaries, should manage those investments with regard to the broader social interest in sustaining ecological health. Even for their own financial self-interest, investors over the long-term should benefit from maintaining nature's capital. We should expect everyone to act in nature's trust, from individual funds to market regulators. The ancient public trust doctrine could be refashioned for stimulating this change, and sovereign wealth funds should take the lead in pioneering best practices for environmentally responsible investing.

Digital Pirates examines the unauthorized creation, distribution, and consumption of movies and music in Brazil. Alexander Sebastian Dent offers a new definition of piracy as indispensable to current capitalism alongside increasing global enforcement of intellectual property (IP). Complex and capricious laws might prohibit it, but piracy remains a core activity of the twenty-first century. Combining the tools of linguistic and cultural anthropology with models from media studies and political economy, Digital Pirates reveals how the dynamics of IP and piracy serve as strategies for managing the gaps between texts-in this case, digital content. Dent's analysis includes his fieldwork in and around Sao Paulo with pirates, musicians, filmmakers, police, salesmen, technicians, policymakers, politicians, activists, and consumers. Rather than argue for rigid positions, he suggests that Brazilians are pulled in multiple directions according to the injunctions of international governance, localized pleasure, magical consumption, and economic efficiency. Through its novel theorization of "digital textuality," this book offers crucial insights into the qualities of today's mediascape as well as the particularized political and cultural norms that govern it. The book also shows how twenty-first century capitalism generates piracy and its enforcement simultaneously, while producing fraught consumer experiences in Latin America and beyond.

Are innovation and creativity helped or hindered by our intellectual property laws? In the two hundred plus years since the Constitution enshrined protections for those who create and innovate, we're still debating the merits of IP laws and whether or not they actually work as intended. Artists, scientists, businesses, and the lawyers who serve them, as well as the Americans who benefit from their creations all still wonder: what facilitates innovation and creativity in our digital age? And what role, if any, do our intellectual property laws play in the growth of innovation and creativity in the United States?
Incentivizing the "progress of science and the useful arts" has been the goal of intellectual property law since our constitutional beginnings. "The Eureka Myth" cuts through the current debates and goes straight to the source: the artists and innovators themselves. Silbey makes sense of the intersections between intellectual property law and creative and innovative activity by centering on the stories told by artists, scientists, their employers, lawyers and managers, describing how and why they create and innovate and whether or how IP law plays a role in their activities. Their employers, business partners, managers, and lawyers also describe their role in facilitating the creative and innovative work. Silbey's connections and distinctions made between the stories and statutes serve to inform present and future innovative and creative communities.
Breaking new ground in its examination of the U.S. economy and cultural identity, "The Eureka Myth" draws out new and surprising conclusions about the sometimes misinterpreted relationships between creativity and intellectual property protections.

Are innovation and creativity helped or hindered by our intellectual property laws? In the two hundred plus years since the Constitution enshrined protections for those who create and innovate, we're still debating the merits of IP laws and whether or not they actually work as intended. Artists, scientists, businesses, and the lawyers who serve them, as well as the Americans who benefit from their creations all still wonder: what facilitates innovation and creativity in our digital age? And what role, if any, do our intellectual property laws play in the growth of innovation and creativity in the United States?
Incentivizing the "progress of science and the useful arts" has been the goal of intellectual property law since our constitutional beginnings. "The Eureka Myth" cuts through the current debates and goes straight to the source: the artists and innovators themselves. Silbey makes sense of the intersections between intellectual property law and creative and innovative activity by centering on the stories told by artists, scientists, their employers, lawyers and managers, describing how and why they create and innovate and whether or how IP law plays a role in their activities. Their employers, business partners, managers, and lawyers also describe their role in facilitating the creative and innovative work. Silbey's connections and distinctions made between the stories and statutes serve to inform present and future innovative and creative communities.
Breaking new ground in its examination of the U.S. economy and cultural identity, "The Eureka Myth" draws out new and surprising conclusions about the sometimes misinterpreted relationships between creativity and intellectual property protections.

Aereo and FilmOn X stream television programming over the Internet for a monthly subscription fee. Aereo and FilmOn's technology permits subscribers to watch both live broadcast television in addition to already-aired programming. Their use of this development in technology has triggered multiple lawsuits from broadcasting companies alleging copyright violations. These cases reveal not only multiple interpretations of copyright law and its application to new and developing technologies but also a possible "loophole" in the law, which some have accused Aereo and FilmOn of exploiting. This book discusses internet television streaming and copyright laws. It then discusses remote-storage digital video recorders and the copyright laws that go along with it.

An updated guide to Canadian copyright law for an age of reckless infringement

This fourth edition of "Canadian Copyright Law" brings you the latest updates according to new Canadian legislation and international agreements. Copyright infringement has always been an invisible crime. Now with near-constant access to the Internet and the mainstream explosion of digital formats, copyright is one of the most important issues for creative professionals, consumers of that media, and those who work in related industries. The line between what is protected and what is "free" is blurring further, and the copyright issues are more complex than ever. Provides a complete update on copyright issues relating to digital media.Takes the convoluted legal jargon of the Canadian Copyright Act and sets it out in everyday language. Provides concrete examples to offer further clarification of complicated matters.

Whether you are a creator or user of copyright material, "Canadian Copyright Law" will keep you current on copyright law in Canada and its applications to your situation--to protect your creations, content, and products in these rapidly changing markets.

"Knowledge commons" describes the institutionalized community governance of the sharing and, in some cases, creation, of information, science, knowledge, data, and other types of intellectual and cultural resources. It is the subject of enormous recent interest and enthusiasm with respect to policymaking about innovation, creative production, and intellectual property. Taking that enthusiasm as its starting point, Governing Knowledge Commons argues that policymaking should be based on evidence and a deeper understanding of what makes commons institutions work. It offers a systematic way to study knowledge commons, borrowing and building on Elinor Ostrom's Nobel Prize-winning research on natural resource commons. It proposes a framework for studying knowledge commons that is adapted to the unique attributes of knowledge and information, describing the framework in detail and explaining how to put it into context both with respect to commons research and with respect to innovation and information policy. Eleven detailed case studies apply and discuss the framework exploring knowledge commons across a wide variety of scientific and cultural domains.

Digital Pirates examines the unauthorized creation, distribution, and consumption of movies and music in Brazil. Alexander Sebastian Dent offers a new definition of piracy as indispensable to current capitalism alongside increasing global enforcement of intellectual property (IP). Complex and capricious laws might prohibit it, but piracy remains a core activity of the twenty-first century. Combining the tools of linguistic and cultural anthropology with models from media studies and political economy, Digital Pirates reveals how the dynamics of IP and piracy serve as strategies for managing the gaps between texts-in this case, digital content. Dent's analysis includes his fieldwork in and around Sao Paulo with pirates, musicians, filmmakers, police, salesmen, technicians, policymakers, politicians, activists, and consumers. Rather than argue for rigid positions, he suggests that Brazilians are pulled in multiple directions according to the injunctions of international governance, localized pleasure, magical consumption, and economic efficiency. Through its novel theorization of "digital textuality," this book offers crucial insights into the qualities of today's mediascape as well as the particularized political and cultural norms that govern it. The book also shows how twenty-first century capitalism generates piracy and its enforcement simultaneously, while producing fraught consumer experiences in Latin America and beyond.

Copyright law's history is one of continuous evolution in the face of technological change. But arguably no prior technological change has impacted copyright with a magnitude comparable to the development of the Internet. Never before has there been such widespread and immediate access to such a broad array of creative works; never before have content creators ranging from individuals to large corporations -- been able to reach a global audience so effortlessly and inexpensively; and never before has it been possible for members of the public to create, transform or distribute multiple perfect copies of works seamlessly, without regard to national borders. How to retain a meaningful copyright system that continues to drive the production of creative works while at the same time preserving the innovative power of the Internet and the free flow of information are questions at the forefront of today's policy debate. As a broadening array of creators continue to express themselves and share their valuable works with the world, and as the Internet continues to grow in economic, social and cultural relevance, the importance of these questions will only be heightened. The industries that rely on copyright are today an integral part of the U.S. economy, accounting for millions of jobs and contributing billions of dollars to the GDP Moreover, the creative content they produce contributes to the development of the broader Internet economy, spurring the creation and adoption of innovative distribution technologies. Not only do these industries make important economic contributions, they are at the core of our cultural expression and heritage. It is no exaggeration to say that U.S. music, movies, television shows, computer software, games, writings and works of art have changed the world. This book provides a lens through which to assess current policy related to copyright and the Internet, identifying important issues that are being addressed by the courts and those that are ripe for further discussion and development of solutions.

Adventures of a Jazz Age Lawyer is the lively story of legal giant Nathan Burkan, whose career encapsulated the coming of age of the institutions, archetypes, and attitudes that define American popular culture. With a client list that included Charlie Chaplin, Al Jolson, Frank Costello, Victor Herbert, Mae West, Gloria Morgan Vanderbilt, Arnold Rothstein, and Samuel Goldwyn, Burkan was "New York's Spotlight Lawyer" for more than three decades. He was one of the principal authors of the epochal Copyright Act of 1909 and the guiding spirit behind the American Society of Composers, Authors, and Publishers (Ascap), which provided the first practical means for songwriters to collect royalties for public performances of their works, revolutionizing the music business and the sound of popular music. While the entertainment world adapted to the disruptive technologies of recorded sound, motion pictures, and broadcasting, Burkan's groundbreaking work laid the legal foundation for the Great American Songbook and the Golden Age of Hollywood, and it continues to influence popular culture today. Gary A. Rosen tells stories of dramatic and uproarious courtroom confrontations, scandalous escapades of the rich and famous, and momentous clashes of powerful political, economic, and cultural forces. Out of these conflicts, the United States emerged as the world's leading exporter of creative energy. Adventures of a Jazz Age Lawyer is an engaging look at the life of Nathan Burkan, a captivating history of entertainment and intellectual property law in the early twentieth century, and a rich source of new discoveries for anyone interested in the spirit of the Jazz Age.

The Freedom of Information Act 2000 came into force on 1 January 2005, creating a new statutory 'right to open government'. It imposed new duties on public authorities regarding the disclosure and handling of information. The fifth edition of this popular Guide offers the most up-to-date guidance on the Act, taking into account all the changes since the publication of the last edition. Most significantly, the developments have been in relation to the case law and this Guide features expert analysis of the most noteworthy decisions and their impact on this area of law. The Guide is essential reading those working within, or advising, public bodies; those advising clients with a personal, professional, or commercial interest in obtaining information; and those advising business clients on the accessibility of commercially sensitive information. The Blackstone's Guide series delivers concise and accessible books covering the latest legislative changes and amendments. First published soon after enactment, they offer expert commentary by leading names on the scope, extent, and effects of the legislation, plus a full copy of the Act itself. They provide a cost-effective solution to key information needs and are the perfect companion for any practitioner needing to get up to speed with the latest changes.

Property has long played a central role in political and moral philosophy. Philosophers dealing with property have tended to follow the consensus that property has no special content but is a protean construct - a mere placeholder for theories aimed at questions of distributive justice and efficiency. Until recently there has been a relative absence of serious philosophical attention paid to the various doctrines that shape the actual law of property. If the philosophy of property is to be more attentive to concepts lying between broad considerations of political philosophy and distributive justice on the one hand and individual rules on the other, what in this broad space needs explaining, and how might we justify what we find? The papers in this volume are a first step towards filling this gap in the philosophical analysis of private law. This is achieved here by revisiting the contributions of philosophers such as Hume, Locke, Kant, and Grotius and revealing how particular doctrines illuminate the way in which property law respects the equality and autonomy of its subjects. Secondly, by exploring the central notions of possession, ownership, and title and finally by considering the very foundations of conceptualism in property.

Rooted in the civil law systems of continental Europe, where foundations originally served mainly charitable purposes, the private foundation is an innovative development in common law jurisdictions. More and more jursidictions are introducing private foundations as an alternative to trusts and practitioners are increasingly asked to advise clients on the intricacies of the developing law and the differences between jurisdictions. Private Foundations World Survey is the first survey book to consider comprehensively private foundations law and practice in each of the key jurisdictions. With a unique questionnaire format and summary factsheet for easy reference, it examines all the fundamental aspects of setting up and maintaining a private foundation, with reference to relevant legislation and case law. The two expert editors, along with a team of leading international practitioners, cover an exhaustive range of topics, including protectors, taxation, alternatives to private foundations, forced heirship, divorce, asset protection, and migration of private foundations as well as anti-money laundering and KYC requirements. Alongside 21 jurisdiction-specific chapters (which include jurisdictions where the law is still developing, as well as those with more established systems), the book contains general chapters on the uses of foundations and taxation issues in the UK and US. It thus provides readers with all the information they need to confidently assess and advise on any aspect of private foundations law.

This book provides an overview of the current debate over whether a holder of a patent essential to an industry standard, who has promised to license such patented technology on fair, reasonable, and non-discriminatory (FRAND) terms, may nevertheless obtain an injunction from a federal court or an exclusion order from the International Trade Commission against infringing products that implement the industry standard. The book first summarises several fundamental principles of patent law, then discusses the relationship between standard-setting organisations and FRAND licensing. It continues with an explanation of the role and duties of the International Trade Commission (ITC) and how there are different legal standards that apply to the award of injunctive relief in federal courts and in the ITC. Also discussed are the recent developments relating to standard-essential patents and FRAND licensing that have occurred in federal agencies responsible for antitrust enforcement, ITC cases, and congressional hearings.