[Ecommerce] Miami Nov 19 IP Trade Seminar - Negotiating IP Provisions in Free Trade Agreements

[James Love]

http://www.wcl.american.edu/pippi/031119agenda.pdf

        Negotiating Intellectual Property Provisions
                     in Free Trade Agreements

     A one-day workshop on Wednesday, November 19, 2003

               sponsored in Miami, Florida by

     The Program on Intellectual Property and the Public
   Interest Washington College of Law, American University

             The Consumer Project on Technology,
                           and the

Centro de Eduios Interdisciplinario de Derecho Industrial y
  Economico (CEIDIE) Universidad de Buenos Aires, Argentina

                     with the support of
      The John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation


In recent years, international trade agreements have supplanted
specialized treaties as the most important vehicle for defining norms in
global intellectual property law. With the 1994 WTO TRIPS Agreement as a
baseline, the United States, the European Union and other countries now
are seeking agreement on higher levels of protection for patents,
copyright, trademarks and other forms of IP, and on measures for the
enforcement of these rights. The major vehicles for this post-TRIPS
enhancement of trade-based IP protection are so-called Free Trade
Agreements of bilateral, regional or even hemispheric coverage.

FTA's raise a full range of issues concerning the appropriate definition
of intellectual property norms in light of the positions of the
countries negotiating such understandings. Some of these issues seem
remote from the immediate concerns of countries struggling to build
basic economic institutions. But they may have important consequences
for the future. Many of these issues are highly technical in nature, and
some of them can be illuminated by examining the experience of countries
(including the U.S. and various European states) which have a relatively
long experience with high levels of IP protection.

The goal of the workshop is to provide negotiators participating in the
development of FTA's with a useful "toolkit" of information about basic
IP law concepts; the IP provisions of various concluded and proposed
FTA's; the implications of those provisions for cultural, scientific,
and economic development; and the possible alternatives. In the course
of the day, experts from South and North South America will participate
in a series of topically organized panels on various IP topics, leading
up to a general discussion of negotiating goals and strategies. The
workshop will offer a wide range of perspectives on this important
topic, along with an opportunity for the exchange of views among
participants.

The workshop will be held in the Storer Auditorium of the University of
Miami, in Coral Gables, which is convenient to downtown Miami by taxi
and public transportation. Speaker presentation will be followed by
opportunities for questions and answers. Concise briefing papers on
various topics will be distributed at the workshop.

A tentative agenda for the workshop follows:

9-9:30am -- Welcome and Introduction: Peter Jaszi, American University
(U.S.) and Carlos Correa, CEIDIE (Argentina)

9:30 - 11am -- Panel I: Copyright, Trademark, and related Forms of
Protection
- Howard Knopf, Macera & Jarzyna (Canada): Substantive Copyright Law:
- Gwen Hinze, Electronic Frontier Foundation (U.S.): Technological
Protection and Anti-circumvention
- Christine Farley, American University: Trademark Law (US)
- David Vivas Eugui, International Center for Trade and Sustainable
Development ICTSD] (Switzerland): Geographic Indications

Break

11:15 am -12:45 pm -- Panel II: Industrial Property and Internet Regulation
- Joshua Sarnoff, American University: Substantive Patent Law (US)
- Carlos Correa: Patent and IP Enforcement (Argentina)
- Perez Miranda, Universidad Nacional Aut=F3noma de M=E9xico [UNAM]
(Mexico): Compulsory Licensing and Investment Agreements
- Michael Froomkin, University of Miami (U.S.): Internet Domain Names

Lunch provided - Keynote speakers will include Francisco Cannabrava,
Second Secretary, Brazilian Embassy in Mexico


2:15-3:30 pm -- Panel III: Sui Generis Protection
- P. Bernt Hugenholtz, Institute for Information Law, University of
Amsterdam (Netherlands): Database Protection
- Rose Marie Maldonado, Abogado (Guatemala): Protection for
Pharmaceutical Testing Data
- Alejandro Argumedo, Asociaci=F3n ANDES (Peru): Traditional Knowledge
- Maria Julia Oliva, Center for International Environmental Law [CIEL]
(Switzerland): Plant Variety Protection

Break

3:45-5:15 pm -- Panel IV: A Roundtable on the Trade Negotiation Process
and Coalition Building
- Jonathan Band, Morrison & Foerster (U.S.)
- James Love, Consumer Project on Technology (U.S.)
- Samuel Moreno, FTAA Negotiator (Panama)
- Roman Macaya, Domestic Chemical Manufacturers - Costa Rica
- Diane Tussie, Facultad Latinamericana de Ciencias Sociales [FLACSO]
(Argentina)
- Luis Villarroel Villalon, Legal Advisor, Ministry of Education (Chile)
- Elza Moreira Marcelino de Castro Divisao de Propiedad Intelectual,
DNT- (Brazil)

Reception  - drinks and hors d=92oeuvres

THE WORKSHOP IS OFFERED FREE OF CHARGE, PLEASE CONTACT EARL PIERCE
(etpierce@wcl.american.edu or 202-274- 4148) TO BE PLACED ON THE
REGISTRATION LIST. WHEN REGISTERING, PLEASE INDICATE YOUR NAME,
INSTITUTIONAL AFFILIATION, E-MAIL ADDRESS, PRIMARY TELEPHONE NUMBER, AND
FAX NUMBER,

Although the organizers of the workshop hope that as many registrants as
possible can join us for the entire day, those who can participate in
only part of the program also are welcome. Further information about the
location of the workshop and transportation options will be posted soon
at this website.