This fresh and insightful Research Handbook delivers global perspectives on information law and governance, delving into principles of information law in the areas of trade secrecy, privacy, data protection and cybersecurity. Providing US, Japanese and European perspectives, this Research Handbook presents an overview of legal regimes concerning the protection of information, with a particular focus on trade secrecy protection. Top international contributors offer analyses of general principles of information law, rights in data, the tension between trade secrecy and the freedom of information and the cross-fertilisation between national and regional data protection regimes. Presenting an interdisciplinary and holistic approach to information law and governance, this innovative Research Handbook will be useful to those researching trade secrets, privacy and data security laws. The broad range of perspectives will also appeal to attorneys and information professionals who are engaged in information governance activities on behalf of their clients or employers.

Dealing with rights and developments at the margin of classic intellectual property, this fascinating book explores emerging types of regulations and how existing IP regimes inform and influence the judicial and legislative creation of 'substitute' IP rights.The editors have carefully structured the book to ensure that there is a thorough analysis of how commercial values arising at the margins of classic IP rights are regulated. As new regimes of regulations emerge, the question of how existing IP regimes inform and influence the judicial and legislative creation of 'substitute' intellectual property rights is explored. By doing this, the contributors interrogate the very boundaries that constitute what IP rights traditionally protect and cover. Should all investments in anything intangible and 'intellectual' - such as product shapes, personality, data and organization of an event - be protected as property? Should there be qualitative differences among the types of investments and achievements? These are just some of the interesting questions addressed in this important new book. Academics, policymakers, lawyers and many others concerned with IP rights, will benefit from the extensive and thoughtful discussion presented in this work. Contributors: T. Aplin, S. Ericsson, J. Griffiths, A. Kur, N. Lee, S. Maniatis, A. Ohly, A. Quaedvlieg, G. Rinkerman, K. Schmitt, Y. Tamura, N. van der Laan, G. Westkamp

The nature and content of intellectual property (IP) law, which is heavily contingent on the state of technology and on social and market developments, has always been subject to ongoing transitions. How those transitions are effected and the shape they take is crucial to the ability of IP to achieve its stated goals and provide the necessary climate for investment in creativity, innovation and brand differentiation. Yet the need for change can run headlong into a desire for coherence. A search for coherence tests the limits of the concept of "intellectual property," is imperiled by overlaps between different IP regimes, and calls for a unifying normative theme. This volume assembles contributors from across IP and the globe to explore these questions, including whether coherence is desirable. It should be read by anyone interested in understanding the conceptual underpinnings of one of the most important and dynamic areas of the law.

The protection of privacy and personality is one of the most fascinating issues confronting any legal system. This book provides a detailed comparative analysis of the laws relating to commercial exploitation of personality in France, Germany, the United Kingdom and the United States. It examines the difficulties in reconciling privacy and personality with intellectual property rights in an individual's identity and in balancing such rights with the competing interests of freedom of expression and freedom of competition. This analysis will be useful for lawyers in legal systems which have yet to develop a sophisticated level of protection for interests in personality. Equally, lawyers in systems which provide a higher level of protection will benefit from the comparative insights into determining the nature and scope of intellectual property rights in personality, particularly questions relating to assignment, licensing, and post-mortem protection.

The nature and content of intellectual property (IP) law, which is heavily contingent on the state of technology and on social and market developments, has always been subject to ongoing transitions. How those transitions are effected and the shape they take is crucial to the ability of IP to achieve its stated goals and provide the necessary climate for investment in creativity, innovation and brand differentiation. Yet the need for change can run headlong into a desire for coherence. A search for coherence tests the limits of the concept of "intellectual property," is imperiled by overlaps between different IP regimes, and calls for a unifying normative theme. This volume assembles contributors from across IP and the globe to explore these questions, including whether coherence is desirable. It should be read by anyone interested in understanding the conceptual underpinnings of one of the most important and dynamic areas of the law.

Intellectual property law has been harmonized by EU law to a considerable extent. At the same time intellectual property rights have converged. The academic discussion has not kept pace with this development. European intellectual property law is often seen through the spectacles of national law; pan-European discussions about issues of Community law seem to be the exception rather than the rule. The contributors to this volume investigate if and to what extent European rules and principles applicable to all intellectual property rights already exist or whether they can be found on the basis of the acquis communautaire and comparative law. In particular, they discuss the merits and the methodology of common principles before turning to several areas of substantive intellectual property law such as grounds of protection, secondary liability and exceptions, to enforcement and finally to the relationship between intellectual property and neighbouring areas of EU law.

With a particular focus on intellectual property, this work explores some of the key methodological and institutional issues affecting the development of European private law. Leading experts consider seven key topics, furthering understanding of the impact of Europeanization on the substance and quality of law, the process of law-making in a Europeanised system, and the requirements for a truly "European" legal order. The work begins by looking at the making of European Intellectual Property law, covering models of European harmonization, the pursuit of harmonization to date, and the creation of the European intellectual property courts. It goes on to examine the impact of European IP law, covering the impact of constitutional rights and values on intellectual property, the impact of general EU law on intellectual property, the relationship between European and national courts, and European legal methodology. Using intellectual property as a case study in private law Europeanization, the work generate insights of relevance and application within the fields of intellectual property and private law generally to help develop a European legal methodology.

This book consists of a careful analysis of the comparative advertising directive, giving background both to the regulation of comparative advertising in the United Kingdom and Germany and to the passing of the directive. It will bring to a UK reader the latest in thinking on comparative advertising from Germany, where the directive has been the subject of very extensive recent debate. The book also has four appendices in which UK, German and European material is given (all in English). The directive applies to any advertisement (or indeed any representation of any kind made to promote goods or services) that explicitly or implicitly identifies a competitor. It therefore has the potential to regulate such claims as "the best bookseller in Oxford" and could have a dramatic effect on UK advertising practice. It is an important first step in the Commission's programme of unfair competition harmonisation.