Duke University School of Law
9^th Annual Hot Topics in Intellectual Property

 February 19, 2010

The 'Hot Topics' Symposium was held on Friday, February 19, 2010, at Duke Law School. This year, the panels again focused on cutting-edge issues in intellectual property law.

We were greatly honored to welcome Ms. Jennifer A. Haverkamp, Managing Director for International Policy and Negotiations for the Environmental Defense Fund, and Ms. Tina Dam, Senior Director of IDNs for ICANN, as our keynote speakers.  

Our morning session focused on the status of the transfer of IP technology in the aftermath of the Copenhagen climate change convention. In December 2009, Copenhagen hosted the United Nations Climate Change Conference with the goal of creating a framework for mitigating climate change. One of the main issues on the table was technology transfer: should licensing be compulsory? Should there be an international executive committee overseeing technology transfer? The panel examined how the IP landscape has changed post-Copenhagen and what the future holds. What new challenges and opportunities are there on a global stage and in day-to-day practice? What needs to be done in Copenhagen's aftermath?

Our afternoon panel explored new frontiers in the world of online trademark. Specifically, the panel examined ICANN’s recent moves to expand the general top-level domain (gTLD) space and to offer support for domain names in non-roman characters. These changes generate profound implications for the future of online trademarks.  A new era of cyber-squatting and novel approaches to protecting intellectual property assets are all possibilities in this new phase of the internet as we know it.

A webcast of the event is available. 

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