This presentation will highlight the impact of the Biden Administration on the intellectual property landscape in early 2021. After the mixed effects of America Invents Act (AIA) from the Obama administration and the Trump Administration’s confirmation of Andrei Iancu as Director of the USPTO, what is the Biden Administration doing next? In the wake of a still-raging pandemic, pressure to fast-track medical solutions may inspire long-lasting shifts in the global intellectual property framework in the forms of a proposed waiver to the TRIPS Agreement and renewed interest in compulsory licensing. The DEFEND Act, proposed by Kamala Harris, suggested that the Biden Administration may take a strong stand against international trade secret theft, but proposed legislation to eliminate employee non-compete clauses suggests that domestic trade secret protection may get weaker. This presentation will take a bird’s eye view of the first effects of this new administration, including the ways in which it has dismantled or built on the achievements of its predecessors.

One hour of CLE credit will be offered to the surrounding MCLE states.