This week, Matt Poulsen, co-owner and patent attorney at Suiter Swantz IP, was a speaker at the “Intellectual Property Rights (IPR) Enforcement and Development: A Project for Iraq” event organized and hosted by the U.S. Department of State and the Lincoln Council for International Visitors.
Members of the Iraqi delegation included government officials, patent examiners, and engineers offering a rich exchange of ideas and practices.
Matt was joined by Christal Sheppard, fellow adjunct professor at the University of Nebraska College of Law and former Direction of the Regional Patent Office – Detroit. Matt and Christal discussed a variety of topics with the Delegation including various aspects of the international IP regime, the creation and enforcement of intellectual property rights in the United States and differences between the U.S. and Iraqi systems, and steps Iraq will need to undergo to align with internationally-accepted IP standards.
“In the United States we take for granted strong legal systems and established intellectual property and patent systems. It was an incredible opportunity to speak with members of the delegation and get a firsthand look of a developing IP system and the challenges and opportunities they face,” says Poulsen.
