At the end of April, the Office of the United States Trade Representative (USTR) published the 2017 edition of its Special 301 Report (link to report). The Report is an "annual review of the state of IP protection and enforcement in U.S. trading partners around the world" and calls out "foreign countries and expose[s] the laws, policies, and practices that fail to provide adequate and effective IP protection and enforcement for U.S. inventors, creators, brands, manufacturers, and service providers" (Report, at page 1).
Of the 34 countries listed, two countries on the lists surprise me: Switzerland and Canada. Switzerland is on the list because of difficulties in online copyright protection and enforcement, and Canada is on the list because the US has issues with its copyright, trademark and patent systems.
- Henry Park
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