May 2, 2011

IP Enforcement Roundup

USTR to Release Special 301 Report Today

USTR has scheduled the release of the 2011 Special 301 Report for today. All of the comment received by USTR in this year’s Special 301 Report, including both written comments and testimony at the public hearing are available at regulations.gov (enter “ustr-2010-0037″ in the search field to access the Special 301 Comments). PIJIP has also created a webpage with direct links to comments from some of the groups with whom we work.

EC Commission Response to the Opinion of European Academics on Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement

The European Commission’s Directorate-General for Trade has released a working paper that responds to a February Opinion of European Academics on the Anti Counterfeiting Trade Agreement. The Opinion, signed by 182 academics, highlights ACTA’s conflicts with both EU law and the enforcement provisions of the TRIPS Agreement. The EC writes, “After close examination of the Opinion, we believe that the opinion fails to demonstrate, in a convincing manner, that ACTA is not in line with the relevant Community acquis or that it raises legitimate concerns as regards certain fundamental rights. While the Opinion shows that the rules of ACTA are not entirely similar to the corresponding EU law, this does not imply that ACTA is incompatible with EU law.” Click here for more.

USTR to Table Full IP Chapter of the Trans Pacific Partnership in June – Drug Industry Lobbies for the Abandonment of the May 10, 2007 Deal on Access to Medicines

Inside U.S. Trade reports that USTR intends to table a full intellectual property chapter for the Trans Pacific Partnership (TPP) by mid June, and that the pharmaceutical industry has been lobbying to reverse the policy deal struck by the Bush Administration and Congressional Democrats on May 10, 2007. The leaked text that has circulated leaves out the controversial provisions covered by the agreement: data exclusivity, patent extensions, and linkage between patent offices and health regulators. The pharmaceutical industry wants USTR to use the Korea-US FTA language as a template for these provisions in the TPP, which are regarded as offering the strongest IP protections in these areas of any bilateral FTA to date. Health advocates stress the importance of the flexibilities in the May 10, 2007 Agreement for countries needing to access generic medicines. Click here for more.

New York City Councilmember Introduces Legislation to Imprison and/or Fine Consumers of Counterfeit Goods

New legislation introduced by Councilmember Margaret Chin would criminalize the purchase of counterfeit goods at the consumer level. According to her press release, “The bill … will make it a Class A misdemeanor to purchase goods with counterfeit trademarks. This penalty carries with it a maximum of $1000 fine and/or up to one year in jail. The bill targets those who purchase goods which they should know are counterfeit, based on the cost or quality of the item of the conditions and location of the seller or sale.” Click here for more.

Events and Deadlines