FIND A COMMITTEE

International Patent Law & Trade Committee

The Committee develops, proposes, and advances IPO policy positions (with other committees and IPO members), prepares educational and public communications, and monitors global developments in:

• Intellectual property frameworks that impact global trade and depend upon robust IP protection and enforcement through comments to the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) regarding the annual Special 301 Report, bilateral trade agreements (e.g., USMCA and its update in July 2026), and WTO/TRIPS;
• Genetic resources and traditional knowledge legal frameworks for access and benefit sharing, including WIPO treaty ratification and introduction of GRTK disclosure requirements into multi-lateral agreements, that will lead to increased international conservation and to their effective utilization; and
• Procedural harmonization initiatives improving cost efficiency and reducing administrative burden for international patent portfolios, including Global Assignment to streamline recording ownership of intellectual property rights, E-signatures projects for IP offices to broadly accept electronic signatures by applicants, providing certain minimum requirements are met, Global Identifier (Global ID) and its use cases for improved accuracy and transparency, and Artificial Intelligence (AI), with a focus on leveraging use of AI to facilitate the patent search, review, and grant process.