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Intellectual Property: Currency of the New Economy
As Peter Drucker predicted, so has it come to pass; the new economy companies that proliferate in the United States and across the Group of 8 ('G8') countries are predominantly fueled by human capital, and enterprises participating in advanced economies are service-based and knowledge-driven.
The knowledge resident in our people that manifests itself in codified (patents, trademarks, and copyrights) and non-codified (know-how, trade secrets) intellectual capital is the single most significant source of value in the new economy. When codified, intellectual capital is transformed into intellectual property ('IP'), which conveys an ownership right in inventions that quite often serve as the foundation upon which entire businesses are built.
Given the legal standing of IP assets and their centrality to the ongoing process of building, managing, and leveraging value that private sector leaders are responsible for stewarding, IP is the primary focus here. If what is posited above is indeed true and IP is the critical source of value for new economy companies, it is important that we understand how these intangible assets are perceived, valued, and leveraged relative to the hard assets that were so vital to industrial era growth. Specifically, the way in which the capital markets view IP assets and the means by which IP is emerging as the currency of the new economy will be considered.
Major Differences In UK, U.S. Copyright Laws
This article highlights how copyright law in the United Kingdom differs from U.S. copyright law, and points out differences that may be crucial to entertainment and media businesses familiar with U.S law that are interested in operating in the United Kingdom or under UK law. The article also briefly addresses contrasts in UK and U.S. trademark law.
The Article 8 Opt In
The Article 8 opt-in election adds an additional layer of complexity to the already labyrinthine rules governing perfection of security interests under the UCC. A lender that is unaware of the nuances created by the opt in (may find its security interest vulnerable to being primed by another party that has taken steps to perfect in a superior manner under the circumstances.
Strategy vs. Tactics: Two Sides of a Difficult Coin
With each successive large-scale cyber attack, it is slowly becoming clear that ransomware attacks are targeting the critical infrastructure of the most powerful country on the planet. Understanding the strategy, and tactics of our opponents, as well as the strategy and the tactics we implement as a response are vital to victory.
Legal Possession: What Does It Mean?
Possession of real property is a matter of physical fact. Having the right or legal entitlement to possession is not "possession," possession is "the fact of having or holding property in one's power." That power means having physical dominion and control over the property.
The Stranger to the Deed Rule
In 1987, a unanimous Court of Appeals reaffirmed the vitality of the "stranger to the deed" rule, which holds that if a grantor executes a deed to a grantee purporting to create an easement in a third party, the easement is invalid. Daniello v. Wagner, decided by the Second Department on November 29th, makes it clear that not all grantors (or their lawyers) have received the Court of Appeals' message, suggesting that the rule needs re-examination.