Many people in the intellectual property arena are wondering how Donald Trump’s presidency will affect the world of intellectual property. President-Elect Trump, no stranger to intellectual property, has had his own dealings with intellectual property through his businesses and his run for President. He has spent thousands of dollars to protect his Trump brand and more recently, spent $100,000.00 to buy the rights to “Make America Great Again” from radio host Bobby Bones.
Although President-Elect Trump has worked to protect his intellectual property, his views on intellectual property are unclear and so too is his vision for the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).
In her first Post-Election speech, Director of the USPTO, Michelle Lee, shared her thoughts on intellectual property after the Obama administration:
I believe the incoming administration must and will continue our effort to promote innovation fueled by a strong and robust IP system. Support for IP in the United States has a long history of bipartisanship, and there’s no reason to imagine that changing with a new president and a new Congress, both of whom have economic growth as a top priority. . .
I’m optimistic the incoming administration will share our appreciation of the importance of intellectual property as a driver of economic growth… I would hope any legislative proposal will take into account the numerous positive changes that have occurred recently in the patent system including: through the courts, including on attorneys fees, pleading requirements and discovery limits, and at the USPTO through the PTAB and the agency’s efforts to improve the quality of patents in our system…
Further, I anticipate that the USPTO’s work across the globe to ensure that other countries have strong IP protections adequate enforcement mechanisms and remedies, and appropriate technology transfer (or licensing and competition) policies, will continue in the next Administration particularly in such countries as China and others. This is a President-elect that has promised economic growth and job creation in our country, and IP will necessarily be a key piece to achieving that goal. . . .
Michelle Lee’s full remarks can be read here.
We recently wrote on President-Elect Trump and his stance on intellectual property. While Trump tends to focus more on trade-based initiatives, he has also focused on deterring infringement on U.S. intellectual property. For example, one of his initiatives is aimed at ending China’s intellectual property violations by “enforc[ing] stronger protections against Chinese hackers and counterfeit goods.” Trump has also stated that “going forward, we will adopt a zero tolerance policy on intellectual property theft and forced technology transfer.”