CIGI will be hosting two panels as part of the 5th Global Congress on Intellectual Property and the Public Interest in Washington, DC. Please visit the Global Congress event page for more information on the conference agenda.
Panel 1: Setting International Intellectual Property Norms between Multilateralism, Regionalism and Bilateralism
Date: Friday, 28th of September, 2018, at American University Washington College of Law
Description: Regime shifting in the international trade and intellectual property (IP) fora, has since the mid 2000’s, challenged the significance of the multi-lateral system in setting global IP norms. The proliferation of a growing number of preferential free trade agreements (FTAs) with highly contextualized chapters on IP have a profound impact on how domestic jurisdictions approach and use IP in the latter half of the twenty first century.
As an aspect of international law then, IP is now gaining its traction and significance from its treatment in FTAs. This panel will reflect on the convergence and divergences between multilateralism, bilateralism and unilateralism and its influence on trade and e-commerce in the twenty first century. The panelists will focus on three significant developments in IP rules to illustrate these trajectories: how copyright provisions in FTAs are influenced by digital trade; the treatment of patent term extensions in CETA, NAFTA and other FTAs and its impact on patent protection, and how FTAs are creating new norms on food-based geographical indications(GIs) that may confine or confound the current rules.
Speakers:
- Bassem Awad, Deputy Director for Intellectual Property Law and Innovation, Centre for International Governance Innovation
- Michael Geist, University of Ottawa and Senior Fellow, Centre for International Governance Innovation
- Jean Frederic Morin, Canada Research Chair in International Political Economy, Laval University
- Marsha Simone Cadogan, Post-Doctoral Fellow, Centre for International Governance Innovation
Panel 2: Intellectual Property and Artificial Intelligence Biases
Date: Friday, 28th of September 2018, at American University Washington College of Law
Description: This panel will address the challenges associated with intellectual property (IP) rights as they relate to exacerbating biases in the development and use of artificial intelligence (AI). Because machine learning needs vast amounts of training datasets, IP scholars argue that copyright restricts access to and the use of protected content. By licensing for use and using digital locks, developers use readily available information which may not be as diverse or reflective of broader society. Another way that intellectual property law can contribute to bias, is by restricting access to algorithms that have been used in a variety of applications, including in the criminal justice system.
This panel will discuss the potential challenges facing intellectual property rights to reduce biases and the potential solutions.
Speakers:
- Bassem Awad, Deputy Director for Intellectual Property Law and Innovation, Centre for International Governance Innovation
- Amanda Levendowski, Technology Law and Policy Clinic, New York University School of Law
- Ben Sobel, Berkman Klein Center for Internet & Society at Harvard University
- Courtney Doagoo, Centre for International Governance Innovation