IP Attachés. Global Advocates for U.S. Stakeholders in Foreign Markets

• Date: 01 March 2024
• Author: D. Beryl Gardner

IP Attachés Global Advocates for U.S. Stakeholders in Foreign Markets Published in Landslide, Volume 16, Number 3, 2024. © 2024 by the American Bar Association. Reproduced with permission. All rights reserved. This information or any portion thereof may not be copied or disseminated in any form or by any means or stored in an electronic database or retrieval system without the express written consent of the American Bar Association. D. Beryl Gardner Published in Landslide, Volume 16, Number 3, 2024. © 2024 by the American Bar Association. Reproduced with permission. All rights reserved. This information or any portion thereof may not be copied or disseminated in any form or by any means or stored in an electronic database or retrieval system without the express written consent of the American Bar Association. 47 Many are familiar with diplomatic attachés, such as cultural attachés, naval attachés, or agricultural attachés. What some don’t know is that the United States is also represented overseas by intellectual property (IP) attachés. The IP Attaché Program began in 1993, shortly after the establishment of the World Trade Organization (WTO), when the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) sent an attaché to the U.S. Mission to the WTO in Geneva, Switzerland. By 2003, the USPTO had posted an IP attaché to the U.S. Embassy in Beijing due to increasing IP challenges in China. Since that time, the IP Attaché Program has expanded to include positions in major trade markets where IP enforcement is critical. Today, 13 IP experts currently serve as U.S. diplomats in embassies and consulates in cities around the globe: • Brazil: Mercosur countries (Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay, Uruguay), French Guiana, Guyana, and Suriname • China—Beijing: National issues in China, plus Beijing and Shenyang regions • China—Guangzhou: Southern, southwestern, and southeastern regions of China, including Hong Kong and Macao • China—Shanghai: Eastern and central regions of China, plus Taiwan • Europe: European Union, European institutions, United Kingdom, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway, and Switzerland • India: South Asia • Mexico: Mexico, Central America, and the Caribbean • Peru: Bolivia, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, and Peru • Thailand: Southeast Asia • Ukraine: Central Eurasia and the Western Balkans • United Arab Emirates: Middle East and North Africa • U.S. Mission to WIPO/WTO: World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO), United Nations, and WTO 1 IP attachés perform a...