FICPI-UK welcomed the opportunity to participate in the first Roundtable of IP Attorneys & Legal Sector to be hosted by Viscount Camrose, the new Minister for Artificial Intelligence and Intellectual Property on 27th July 2023.
FICP-UK was represented by Kate O’Rourke. Other stakeholders present at the meeting were CIPA, CITMA, AIPPI-UK Branch, IP Bar Association, IP Federation, IP Lawyers Association, IPREG and the Law Society IP Law Committee.
Representatives of the IPO were also in attendance.
The meeting was held under Chatham House Rules to facilitate a full and frank discussion of a number of key current topics, including:
- What can be done to enhance IP rights to grow the economy and promote the UK as a centre for R&D?
- Text & Data Mining
- Rights of Representation
- Exhaustion & REUL
A key message from several of the representatives was that applicants for registered rights at the UKIPO should be encouraged to seek professional advice to avoid wasting time and resource of applicants and the IPO, and to ensure timely and cost effective resolution of disputes.
The importance of the UK continuing to be the jurisdiction of choice for enforcement of rights was also highlighted.
There were a wide variety of opinions expressed on the best ways to ensure IP rights are respected at the same time as developing use of AI and ensuring everyone financially benefits from the AI revolution. It was clear that this will be an ongoing debate for some time.
Finally, there was a degree of unanimity around the limited impact of Retained EU Law and retaining the current exhaustion regime.
The Minister had evidently been very well briefed and was receptive to all the ideas and views expressed by the attendees and to continuing to engage with IP stakeholders. Overall, everyone agreed it was a positive start to the relationship with the new Minister.