Recent Intellectual Property Articles by Three UW Law Faculty

Three UW Law faculty members recently published articles in a Japanese Intellectual Property publication, “I.P. Annual Report: 2008” [Bessatsu NBL no. 123]. All four articles are in Japanese (Professors O’Connor and Naeve’s articles are translated into Japanese from English). Below are summaries authored by Rob Britt, Japanese Legal Materials Specialist within the Library's East Asian Law Department. We expect to receive the Library's copy of “I.P. Annual Report: 2008" in the next few months.

Toshiko Takenaka, Beikoku ni okeru chizai no ugoki (Developments in American Intellectual Property), I.P. Annual Report: 2008 (Bessatsu NBL no. 123), at 127.
Professor Toshiko Takenaka summarizes developments in the past year in American Intellectual property. Highlights include a description of the bill to revise the U.S. patent law, revisions to the rules regulating the US Patent and Trademark Office decisions, and an overview of current developments in US trademark and copyright law.

Toshiko Takenaka, Beikoku ni okeru chiteki zaisan soshō no genjō to tenbō (Current conditions and prospects for cases in American intellectual property), I.P. Annual Report: 2008 (Bessatsu NBL no. 123), at 181.
Professor Toshiko Takenaka provides an introduction to, and an update on the U.S. intellectual property court system and its procedures. She first outlines the US Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit, and explains its importance with regard to intellectual property. This is followed by a sketch of the most important characteristics of patent procedure in the US, and a review of the various US courts that handle intellectual property. A listing and brief analysis of the current intellectual property cases is also provided.


Sean O’Connor, Beikoku kenpō no IP jōkō no shita ni okeru tokkyo taishō no kagakushi kara no kenshiki ni motozuita saiteigi] (Redefinition of views on the objects of patents founded in scientific history under the IP articles in the U.S. Constitution), I.P. Annual Report: 2008 (Bessatsu NBL no. 123), at 289.
In this article, Professor O’Connor reviews the history of patentability under the U.S. Constitution. He discusses in detail the so-called “Progress” and “IP” articles in the Constitution, and continues with an analysis of “science” as interpreted in the Constitution and constitutional court decisions.

Signe Naeve (with co-panelists), RCLIP tokubetsu seminā: Hōsō kontentsu no tensō o meguru shisutemu teikyōsha tō no chosakukenhō jō no sekinin : Ei-Bei no jōkyō o fumaete (Special RCLIP Panel: Liability under the copyright law of individuals providing a system to transmit the contents of a broadcast: Based on current conditions in England and the United States), I.P. Annual Report: 2008 (Bessatsu NBL no. 123), at 309.
Professor Naeve (Brunstad), with co-panelists Jonathan Griffiths, Tetsuya Imamura and Ryu Takabayashi at a presentation to RCLIP (Research Center for the Legal System of Intellectual Property [at Waseda University]), discussed liability under copyright law of individuals who provide systems for transmitting broadcast contents. Professor Naeve’s presentation centered on current conditions in the United States, comparing the U.S. situation with Japan and using U.S. cases to illustrate her points. She laid out the framework of laws and regulations underlying the American copyright liability environment, and discussed recent changes in the legal structure with regard to broadcasting. Finally Naeve reviewed court decisions on copyright infringement in the U.S. and discussed their implications for the future of copyright in this area. Questions from the audience following the presentations and the panelist’s answers were included in the article.