Protecting IP Rights in International Business Transactions

If you are an IP attorney, the chances are that you have had to assist a client who has IP exposure in a foreign country. Hopefully, you have only dealt with these issues on the transactional side, and your client’s business has been humming along since then. But what happens when things go wrong in a foreign country; especially, a large, developing country, like China? What lessons can be learned in order to better manage your client’s overseas IP exposure?

This chapter provides an overview of international IP issues, and how they may be addressed when arising in a foreign jurisdiction, such as China. I begin the chapter from the perspective of a litigator because, frankly, that is what I primarily do. But litigation experience also helps identify what can go wrong in a transaction, and therefore provides important feedback for transactional practitioners.