RESOLVED, that IPO supports, in principle, legislation to limit the scope of the waiver of attorney-client privilege and work-product immunity in a charge of willful patent infringement when the advice-of-counsel defense is asserted to only the subject matter of the opinion(s) communicated to the client and not to noncommunicated opinions nor to attorney work-product or litigation strategy prepared in anticipation of or in the defense of litigation.
IPO further supports, in principle, legislation to recognize that the protections and obligations of the attorney-client privilege should apply with the same force and effect to confidential communications between foreign patent and trademark attorneys, whether or not qualified as attorneys at law (as well as agents admitted or licensed to practice before their local or regional patent and trademark offices), and their clients, regardless of whether the substance of the communication may involve legal or technical subject matter.