Judge Sotomayor: Adding Intellectual Property Experience to the U.S. Supreme Court

By: Ian McClure
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Every appointment to the U.S. Supreme Court elicits a whirlwind of scrutiny. While the current nomination of the 2nd Circuit's Judge Sonia Sotomayor has proved to be just another high school debate competition on civil rights issues for political activists and politicians, it has also proved to be unique in the fact that it brings, for the first time in a long time, considerable experience in intellectual property law to the highest court in the U.S. The 2nd Circuit is no stranger ... Read More

Categories: Copyright Caucus, Patent Prospects, Trademark Trends

Documentary - Lawrence Lessig, copyright, and remix culture

By: Ian McClure
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I'm a little late on this one, but in case you missed it: This documentary film was forwarded to me by my father, a professor/academician/scholar/ and self-pronounced egghead who specializes in the relationships between philosophy, theology, ethics, popular culture and preaching.  The film, a product of Open Source Cinema, is called "RiP: A remix Manifesto", and touts itself as  . . . an open source documentary about copyright and remix culture. Created over a period of six years, the film features the collaborative remix work ... Read More

Categories: Copyright Caucus

Director Liability for Mismanagement of IP Assets

By: Ian McClure
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As a corporate law practitioner, an interesting IP question that pops up with more regularity is whether and under what circumstances a director of a corporation may be held personally liable for mismanagement of intellectual property.  This question is usually not posed with reference to conflict of interest possibilities, but instead with regard to the duty of care and its implications on maintaining complete information and making sound decisions with regard to that IP.   Of course, many board members don't completely understand the ins ... Read More

Categories: Burgeoning Business, Copyright Caucus, Investment Intelligence, Patent Prospects, Portfolio Potential, Trademark Trends

Venture Capital vs. Venetian Capital

By: Ian McClure
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An investment banker friend sent me a very interesting blog post from Broken Symmetry.  It creatively considers an historical analogy, at the intersect of business method and creative process, between 15th Century Venice and modern day Silicon Valley.  The piece goes on to discuss comparisons between the two, such as their isolated position from other major metropolitan centers (Florence and Rome, LA and New York), or their aspiring classes of artisans and entrepreneurs.  There also exists a parallel between the investors of both ... Read More

Categories: Burgeoning Business, Copyright Caucus, Investment Intelligence, Patent Prospects, Portfolio Potential, Trademark Trends