I was fortunate to be able to attend the Charles Clark memorial lecture on Tuesday afternoon at the London Book Fair, delivered by Elgar author Daniel Gervais, and attended by many dignitaries and stakeholders in the copyright world.

The prestigious Charles Clark Memorial Lecture is an annual event hosted by the Publishers Association (PA), Copyright Licensing Agency (CLA), the Federation of European Publishers (FEP), the Publishers Licensing Society (PLS), and the International Publishers Association (IPA). Focussing on key developments in the world of copyright, the lecture celebrates the achievements of Charles Clark—a British publisher and lawyer who was an authority on the law of copyright.

Daniel Gervais, Professor of Intellectual property law at Vanderbilt University, former friend and colleague of Charles Clark, and author of the book (Re)Structuring Copyright, spoke eloquently on the changing role of intermediation in delivering informational and cultural goods, exceptions as the new rules, and copyright and progress.

Focussing on the changing roles of intermediaries (platforms and tech giants), on the treatment of limitations and exceptions to copyright, and on how copyright can contribute to progress, Gervais delivered a compelling message on how the current system for international protection of copyright is broken and needs to be fixed urgently and decisively.

Gervais indicated that it is time to rethink the rules that exempt intermediaries from liability for activities and systems that undermine copyright protection. He called for a more dynamic copyright system that speaks to quality more than quantity, where Publishers don’t reject calls for access but find creative ways to deliver that access, and for a system that rewards creativity effectively and fosters an environment where copyright can contribute positively to human progress.

Daniel Gervais’ book (Re)Structuring Copyright has just been published as a revised paperback edition. We’re offering a 30% discount when ordered on our website.

To take advantage of the discount offer, go to our website, add the book to your basket, click on ‘your basket’ and enter GERV30 in the discount code box before checkout.

Alternatively email: sales@e-elgar.co.uk quoting the discount code GERV30 with your payment details.

“I have become a mentor to a number of younger academics in the more formal sense of the word, a task that I find as rewarding as my collaboration and networking has been over the years”

Charlotte Waelde is Professor of Intellectual Property Law at Coventry University

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A New Beginning for the European Patent System

By Luke McDonagh.

Until recently, only scant data were publicly available on the subject of patent litigation in EU member states, and as a result it was difficult to accurately examine how prevalent patent litigation was from state to state, how costly it was and how significant the divergences were between the various systems. However, in recent years a number of major studies – based on analysis of carefully gathered empirical patent case data – have been published. These studies have shed new light on the subject of patent litigation in EU member states, particularly in the major jurisdictions of the UK, Germany, France and the Netherlands, where the vast majority of European patent ligation takes place. […]

There have long been significant concerns about how international trade agreements affect Indigenous rights, particularly in respect of Indigenous Intellectual Property. As highlighted in our recent handbook on Indigenous Intellectual Property, there has been an ongoing conversation about the relationship between Indigenous communities, intellectual property, and trade. Such discussions have traditionally taken place in multilateral fora like the World Trade Organization, the World Intellectual Property Organization, the United Nations Environment Programme, international climate talks, and the United Nations Permanent Forum on Indigenous Peoples. Of late, the debate has also arisen in the context of bilateral trade agreements such as the Australia-United States Free Trade Agreement 1994, and mega-regional trade agreements like the Trans-Pacific Partnership 2015. Matthew Rimmer goes on to discuss.

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This year marks the 50th anniversary of Changeover day: when Australia swapped from pounds to the new decimal currency. But the “C” in Changeover day might equally stand for Copyright day, for it marks the first Aboriginal copyright dispute. Stephen Gray goes on to explain.

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