Submitted by Jeff Morton, Chair
Summary of Activities
Number of Meetings Held: 3
September 21, 2010
Guest Speaker: Professor Joost Blom, QC, Universtiy of British Columbia Faculty of Law
Synopsis: Intellectual property rights are usually thought of in strictly territorial terms, with each country's system applying only within that country, and issues of validity and infringement being capable of decision only by that country's courts. Professor Blom discussed the extent to which this picture is accurate in relation to jurisdiction, enforcement of foreign judgments, and choice of law. He also discussed the impact of recent developments such as the Lucasfilm decision (Lucasfilm Ltd. v. Ainsworth, [2009] EWCA Civ 1328) in England.
October 26, 2010
Synopsis: A social event was held for the Intellectual Property and Technology Law Section at the Terminal City Club in Vancouver
May 6, 2011
Guest Speakers: Paul Armitage and David Crane, McCarthy Tetrault LLP
Synopsis: Mr. Armitage and Mr. Crane delivered a comprehensive presentation entitled: "Technology Outsourcing - Best Practices from the Perspectives of Customer and Service Provider."
Comments and Observations of the Chair
One of the most positive aspects of the past year has been the increased attendance to Canadian Bar Association BC Branch Intellectual Property and Technology Law events. The meetings organized by the Section sold out in all cases and many participants were involved through remote attendance. This creates an outstanding issue whereby there are a limited number of firms in Vancouver that can reasonably accommodate 40+ participants for a meeting.
One of the issues that the Section has worked on during the 2010-2011 year was to increase participation from other firms and sole practitioners. The success of this is borne out in the Executive for 2011-2012 which is comprised of members of numerous firms (including sole practitioners) and including new members.