Intellectual Property Law Commons^™

Copyright Protection For Data Obtained By Remote Sensing: How The Data Enhancement Industry Will Ensure Access For Developing Countries, J. Richard West

Northwestern Journal of International Law & Business

The use of remote sensing of the earth by satellite has grown tremendously since the United States launched the first such satellite, Landsat 1, in 1972. In 1984, the Land Remote Sensing Commercialization Act began the gradual transfer of the United States Landsat program to the private sector. The Earth Observation Satellite Company (EOSAT) is the private operator licensed pursuant to the Act, and is preparing to launch the first privately-operated remote sensing satellite, Landsat 6, in 1991. The Commercialization Act requires operators to make raw data available to all users on a nondiscriminatory basis, but it does not preclude …

Maryland Uniform Trade Secrets Act, Peter B. Swann

Maryland Law Review

No abstract provided.

Easing Transfer And Security Interest Transactions In Intellectual Property: An Agenda For Reform, Harold R. Weinberg, William J. Woodward Jr.

Kentucky Law Journal

No abstract provided.

Easing Transfer And Security Interest Transactions In Intellectual Property: An Agenda For Reform, Harold R. Weinberg, William J. Woodward Jr.

Law Faculty Scholarly Articles

Uncertainty and confusion probably always have existed bout the employment of intellectual property as collateral for a loan. Since the drafting of Article 9 of the Uniform Commercial Code, an uneasy coexistence of state and federal law has developed. Both state and federal law now arguably apply when a debtor attempts to use a patent or trademark to secure a loan. The extent to which each body of law is applicable and the interaction between the two systems was left unclear by the drafters of Article 9 and has not been clarified by Congress. The radical differences between the state …

Note On Serendipitous Legal Protections: Preemption Continued - 1989, Wendy J. Gordon

Scholarship Chronologically

The First Circuit in Decosta II recognized something r-ar-ely focused on, but of great importance-- namely, the following question: assuming there are applicable federal ·al policies of non-protection, do those policies for-bid only direct state attempts to restrain copying, or- do they also for-bid any state law which has as one of its effects a restraint on copying?

Computer Programs As Applied Scientific Know-How: Implications Of Copyright Protection For Commercialized University Research, J. H. Reichman

Vanderbilt Law Review

This Article surveys the problems that university administrators face when seeking to exploit proprietary rights in new technologies,with particular regard to computer software. In so doing, it explores larger questions about the proper role of intellectual property laws in protecting applied scientific know-how and the proper role of universities in exploiting the opportunities that such laws increasingly make available.

More On Indirect Protections: Piggyback Damage Claims - 1989, Wendy J. Gordon

Scholarship Chronologically

One issue is whether indirect i/p protection should be allowed to, or encouraged to, piggyback on other forms of protection, 1 ike privacy & contract law. (This is the KEWANEE issue. It's a matter of general pol icy, and of preemption.). Another issue is whether, within federal i/p law, a cause of action based on limited statutory infringement should be handled any differently because other damage damage which wouldn't be actionable alone under the relevant federal statute - is present. (This is raised by the NATION issue. It's a matter of legislative intent & general policy,) Although both issues involve …

The Semiconductor Chip Protection Act And Its Impact On The International Protection Of Chip Designs, Jay Erstling

Faculty Scholarship

The United States Semiconductor Chip Protection Act of 1984 (“SCPA”') has already had a profound impact on the creation of foreign legal systems of chip protection. The allure of reciprocity under the SCPA has motivated a host of nations, including Japan, the Member States of the European Communities (“EC”'), Sweden, Finland, Canada, Australia, and Switzerland, to adopt or consider adopting chip protection legislation. The SCPA has also been the impetus for multilateral discussions within the World Intellectual Property Organization (“WIPO”') and the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (“GATT”') to establish an international standard of chip protection. The result has …

Exploiting Stolen Text: Fair Use Or Foul Play?, Roger J. Miner '56

Intellectual Property

No abstract provided.

An Inquiry Into The Merits Of Copyright: The Challenges Of Consistency, Consent And Encouragement Theory, Wendy J. Gordon

Faculty Scholarship

Hostility to copyright has a long and honorable history. In the nineteenth century, for example, Lord Macaulay argued that while copyright might be necessary to ensure a "supply of good books," the monopoly that it imposed was at best a necessary evil.

"For the sake of the good we must submit to the evil; but the evil ought
not to last a day longer than is necessary for the purpose of securing the good."

A number of studies critical of intellectual property followed in our century. The most well known is probably the economically oriented 1970 study by Stephen Breyer …

Protecting First World Assets In The Third World: Intellectual Property Negotiations In The Gatt Multilateral Framework, Frederick M. Abbott

Vanderbilt Journal of Transnational Law

This Article addresses industrialized countries' growing concerns over technology transfer and their efforts to obtain protection of intellectual property rights under the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT). Mr. Abbott analyzes the intellectual property problem in the context of the GATT framework and the weakness of current intellectual property protection. Developing countries do not accept the United States contention either that intellectual property is covered implicitly by the GATT or that the current lack of protection reflects a fundamental flaw in the General Agreement. Mr. Abbott focuses on this disagreement in laying out the framework for possible solutions, which …

Of Moral Rights And Resale Royalties: The Kennedy Bill, Marshall A. Leaffer

Articles by Maurer Faculty

No abstract provided.

Uruguay Round Trips: A Bibliographic Essay, William M. Walker

Vanderbilt Journal of Transnational Law

The Uruguay Round of multilateral trade negotiations began with a special ministerial meeting of the Contracting Parties to the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) held in Punta del Este, Uruguay, on September 20, 1986. "Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights, Including Trade in Counterfeit Goods" (TRIPs) is a designated subject for negotiation in the Uruguay Round. The inclusion of intellectual property rights in the Uruguay Round is the culmination of a process that began during the Tokyo Round. While the Tokyo Round was in progress, the United States and the European Community reached a tentative accord on various …

Intellectual Property And International Trade: Merger Or Marriage Of Convenience?, R. Michael Gadbaw

Vanderbilt Journal of Transnational Law

This Article examines the interaction between trade and intellectual property rights policies through certain key developments in United States law, the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) and the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO). While this brief review is not intended to provide a definitive analysis, it will offer worthwhile insights into the prospects for, and implications of, such a merger. For this purpose, this Article considers the efforts in GATT to negotiate a code on intellectual property rights and the parallel efforts in WIPO to negotiate a treaty for the protection of semiconductor designs. While the GATT talks …

International Trade And Intellectual Property: Promise, Risks, And Reality, Congressman Robert W. Kastenmeier, David Beier

Vanderbilt Journal of Transnational Law

The trading nations of the world are set to make decisions that will determine the future pattern of international trade. Negotiations are currently underway to bring trade in certain agricultural products, services, and goods and services protected as intellectual property" within the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT). This Article will outline how the consideration of intellectual property came to be included in this round of talks. It will assess the potential benefits and risks of including intellectual property, forecast the probable outcome, and, finally, suggest ways to improve the chances for inclusion of intellectual property into the GATT. …

The Economics Of Intellectual Property Rights And The Gatt: A View From The South, Carlos A.P. Braga

Vanderbilt Journal of Transnational Law

This Article explores the attitude of less developed countries (LDCs) with respect to the debate on TRIPs at the Uruguay Round. Part II addresses the evolution of the debate at the GATT level. Part III presents the economics of intellectual property rights protection from the point of view of LDCs. Finally, Part IV summarizes the main conclusions and recommendations of the Article.

Intellectual Property Rights: The Issues In Gatt, David Hartridge, Arvind Subramanian

Vanderbilt Journal of Transnational Law

This Article examines the need for a multilateral framework to address the trade-related aspects of intellectual property rights (TRIPs). The authors trace the growing importance of TRIPs from its emergence at the Tokyo Round in 1978 to its present state as a major focus of multilateral negotiations at the Uruguay Round. A detailed discussion of existing GATT provisions and their relevance to intellectual property rights follows. The authors then describe the four major substantive issues related to TRIPs that are before the Negotiating Group: substantive standards of intellectual property protection; procedures for the enforcement of intellectual property protection; dispute settlement …

Intellectual Property In International Trade: Opportunities And Risks Of A Gatt Connection, J. H. Reichman

Vanderbilt Journal of Transnational Law

Professor Reichman uncovers a paradox at the heart of the debate about bringing international intellectual property relations within a GATT Code of Conduct. On the one hand, the industrialized countries that subscribe to free-market principles at home want to impose a highly regulated market for intellectual goods on the rest of the world, one in which authors and inventors may "reap where they have sown." On the other hand, the developing countries that restrict free competition at home envision a totally unregulated world market for intellectual goods, one in which "competition is the lifeblood of commerce." To unravel this paradox, …

Design Protection And The New Technologies: The United States Experience In A Transnational Perspective, Jerome H. Reichman

Faculty Scholarship

No abstract provided.

Intellectual Property In Higher Life Forms: The Patent System And Controversial Technologies, Robert P. Merges

Maryland Law Review

No abstract provided.

Stealing Trade Secrets Ethically, Don Wiesner, Anita Cava

Maryland Law Review

No abstract provided.

Comment, Section 337 And Gatt In The Akzo Controversy: A Pre- And Post-Omnibus Trade And Competitiveness Act Analysis, Mark C. Modak-Truran

Journal Articles

Section 337 of the United States Tariff Act of 1930 ("Section 337") protects intellectual property rights from international pirating and counterfeiting. It provides a mechanism for excluding infringing imports from the United States marketplace. Before the Omnibus Trade and Competitiveness Act of 1988 (the "Omnibus Trade Act"), some argued that Section 337 should be amended to provide for further protection. Others maintained that Section 337 conflicts with United States obligations under the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade ("GATT") or that further substantive amendments of Section 337 would conflict with GATT. A GATT Panel in Imports of Certain Automotive Spring …

What Has Happened Since Chakrabarty, Jane M. Marciniszyn

Journal of Law and Health

It is conventional wisdom that the patent system is designed to undergrid the investment in pushing technology forward. The patent system is innovation-oriented. And (sic) it functions most effectively in the expensive, breakthrough technologies, where uncertainties of success or payback abound. If, in assessing the risk of commitment, the penalties of failure outweigh the prizes of success, the prudent money will go elsewhere. The patent system moves the equation to the right, not by better assuring success (for only public needs and market values can do that), but by aiding success through offering the innovator a temporary respite from non-innovative …

Intellectual Property Rights And The Gatt: United States Goals In The Uruguay Round, Mark L. Damschroder

Vanderbilt Journal of Transnational Law

The pursuit of protection of IP rights is a valuable goal both for the United States and the rest of the world community. Such rights promote creativity and the advancement of knowledge, as well as fuel the domestic economy and improve the position of the United States vis-a-vis the other trading nations of the world. With the growing interdependence of the global economy, there is no time like the present to lay the foundation for a system of dispute settlement of such trade matters. Economic interdependence will continue to increase, and the problems of international trade in, and piracy of, …

One Hundred And Two Years Later: The U.S. Joins The Berne Convention, Jane C. Ginsburg, John M. Kernochan

Faculty Scholarship

In historic votes on October 5 and October 12, the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives unanimously approved legislation designed to bring U.S. law into compliance with the Berne Convention. The legislation was signed by President Reagan on October 31, 1988. Also signed by the President was a Senate Resolution of October 20 of Ratification of the Berne Convention. Following deposit of the requisite instruments with the World Intellectual Property Organization in Geneva, U.S. adherence to Berne took effect on March 1, 1989.

For the U.S., this momentous step is the culmination of decades of struggle, including many failed attempts …

Computer Software Copyright Infringement: The Second Generation, Jeffrey A. Berkowitz

Touro Law Review

No abstract provided.

Copyright Protection For Architectural Works, David E. Shipley

Scholarly Works

Architecture is the most commonly experienced and pervasive of all the arts. The creative efforts of architects culminate in structures used for shelter, pleasure, business, entertainment, and transportation.1 Architects express their design concepts in sketches, elevations, floor plans, working drawings, specifications, renditions, and three-dimensional models. Their labors in shaping the ideas for a building from rough conceptions into plans and then into completed structures are similar to the efforts of other creators. An architect is as much an author as is a sculptor or a dramatist. His plans, renditions, and the resulting structure will ordinarily show originality and will reflect …

The Trademark Counterfeiting Act Of 1984: A Sensible Legislative Response To The Ills Of Commercial Counterfeiting, Brian J. Kearney

Fordham Urban Law Journal

This student note explores the recently passed Trademark Counterfeit Act of 1984, viewing it in the context of ever-growing counterfeiting of commercial, agricultural, and aeronautical trademarks. The author examines the history of US trademark regulation, beginning with the Lanham Act of 1946, and then predicts the effects the 1984 Act will have on commercial practice, antitrust law, the sale of goods on the "gray market," and due process implications. The author concludes that though ex parte remedies will be necessary to maintain trademark practices, the 1984 Act does not represent any sort of infringement on due process or commercial practice, …

Sovereign Immunity: The Exception For Intellectual Or Industrial Property, Virginia Morris

Vanderbilt Journal of Transnational Law

The doctrine of sovereign or state immunity exempts a state and its property from the judicial jurisdiction of any other state. The domestic courts of various nations have developed this doctrine over the years through cases in which private citizens have attempted to sue foreign states. Courts' enunciations of the principle of state immunity and their reasons for granting or denying the immunity are almost as numerous as the countries whose courts have faced this issue. The current work of the International Law Commission (the Commission) on the codification and the progressive development of the jurisdictional immunities of states and …

Note On The Four Faces Of The "Sharing Benefits" Issue With Handwritten - 1985, Wendy J. Gordon

Scholarship Chronologically

Any overall theory must first be capable of describing what it seeks to theorize about. This article will now do that. In giving a taxonomy, the article may be making its greatest contribution, Lockean theory will hardly be the last world in intellectual property unification theory. But I will have at lest set the terms for debate so we can finally speak clearly to each other, articulate the issues, see their implications.