LAW-2907 International IP: Copyright
This course will provide an overview of copyright law development and practice in both the Anglo-American property rights tradition (US, UK & related countries) and the author rights tradition (continental Europe), with a very brief review of the laws of other countries including particularly China. An important question is the trend towards harmonization that the international IP and trade treaties suggest, and the degree to which doctrinal differences still matter. We will start with a very brief summary on US copyright law fundamentals, and then focus on key differences in law and enforcement. We will review the core international treaties, focusing on Berne, the TRIPS agreement of 1994 and the WIPO copyright treaty of 1996 and its implementation in the US and the EU. Finally we will discuss advocacy for changes in law and treaties, and will consider whether the new European directive on the Digital Single Market represents a departure from, or a new path towards, international harmonization.
Prerequisite
LAW-2618 LAW-2216 LAW-2298 or LAW-2362 (Recommended)