LEGL 4900 - Exam 3
fluctuation risk
the possibility that the currency of the country in which the US investor has put its money will devalue against the US dollar
Three types of regulatory schemes provide the format for IPR transfer agreements...
- Preapproval - Notification-registration - No regulation
Foreign Direct Investment (FDI)
In FDI, the investor owns and actively controls the productive assets of ongoing business concerns in a foreign country.
political risk
the risk that profits will be affected by changes in the host country's political structure of instability
inconvertibility risk
the risk that the government of a country with soft currency will hinder the foreign entrepreneur from trading the foreign currency back into US dollars
currency inconvertibility
inability to convert currency
jure gestionis
Activities of a commercial nature carried out by a foreign state or one of its organs, or simply put, commercial activity
Trademarks: Europe vs. U.S.
All EUTMs now cover only the "literal meaning" of the goods and services listed in their identifications, which means that the mark owner has to limit use of the mark to specific items, unlike the United States.
soft blockages
For a somewhat higher fee, a business-person may purchase a policy that also prevents against soft blockages, or delays in processing conversion requests by the local authorities.
active investment
If a U.S. investor makes an active investment in a host country, it ultimately will result in the investor having an ownership interest in the foreign business as either a foreign branch or subsidiary.
Priority claim
If at least one of the applicants named in the PCT application is a national or resident of a PCT signatory, the PCT gives the application a priority claim on that invention in all signatory states.
modern-traditional theory
permits takings but imposes certain requirements on the nation exercising its takings power
Cybersquatting
registering of a domain name with the intent to profit from the goodwill of a trademark belonging to another
2 forms of Currency Risk
- Fluctuation risk - Inconvertibility risk
Types of IPR Restrictions
- Geographical limitations - Field of use limitations - restrict the applications for which the licensee may employ the IPR - Output or customer restrictions
jure imperii
Activities of a governmental nature carried out by a foreign state or one of its organs, or simply put, official acts
2 primary means of managing political risk...
- political risk analysis - political risk insurance
hard blockages
when the foreign government passes a law that prevents conversion or transfer
unitary index adjustment
when the parties provide for formulaic adjustment of payment terms based on an accepted unitary index, which can be a commonly accepted measure of relative currency value or national inflation Drawback - Indexes are frequently independent of the facts of the transaction or unreliable, and the techniques do not eliminate currency risk. They shift it to the host country partner, whose own margin evaporates in the event of an unfavorable currency shift.
double taxation
where the same item of income is taxed by two different tax authorities
Geographical Indications under the Doha Development Agenda, main issues...
- Creating a multiregister for wines and spirits - Extending the higher or enhanced level of protection accorded to wines and spirits under TRIPS to other products+
Two problems with the Paris Convention
- Does not require any minimum substantive standard of patent protection - Lack of an enforcement mechanism
A. Bourjois & Co. V. Katzel
A French cosmetic company with a business in the United States sold that business to a U.S. company, A. Bourjois & Co., along with its trademark for face powder. Katzel bought a quantity of the same powder in France and sold it in the U.S. in boxes closely resembling the A. Bourjois boxes, but with its own labels. The plaintiff, A. Bourjois sued for copyright infringement and sought a preliminary injunction restraining the defendant from infringing its copyright. Decision: The U.S. Supreme Court granted the plaintiff, A. Bourjois, a preliminary injunction.
Betriebsrat
Each place of business with more than five employees must have a Betriebsrat ("Works Council") to represent that plant's interest.
political risk insurance
Entrepreneurs who are unwilling to hazard the risk of a foreign government taking will pay a premium to a public or private insurance company. The cost of this insurance is a disincentive to investment abroad.
Patent Protection
Patent Protection is also now available for "any new inventions, whether products or processes, in all fields of technology, provided that they are new, involve an inventive step (NONOBVIOUS), and are capable of industrial application (USEFUL).
Bank of America Nat'l Trust & Savings Assn. v. United States
Plaintiff Bank of America conducted business in Thailand, the Phillipines, and Argentina. With respect to this business, Bank of America paid the three jurisdictions various types of taxes. Bank of America demanded a credit for most of these assessments either on its federal income tax returns or by refund claim. Decision - The U.S. Court of Claims dismissed the petition for a tax credit.
Royalty
The U.S. firm might grant a license for a fee, known as a royalty.
Employee Participation in Strategic Decisions: U.S. v. Europe
U.S. management, completely by itself and in secret, make strategic decision such as whether to close a plant or reduce manpower levels. European law grants workers a right of consultation about, or notice before, the implementation of decisions resulting in workforce reductions.
profit margin preservation
Under the profit margin preservation approach, the price or payment to the foreign investor will be adjusted periodically to maintain the same profit margin. Drawback - It can disclose the foreign company's cost structure because it permits competitors to price effectively against the firm.
Geographical indications
Where a product, particularly wine or liquor, is marketed by reference to a geographic region
counterpurchase agreement
a common type of countertrade, involves the sale of goods to a buyer, often a foreign government, which requires as a condition of the sale that the seller buy other goods produced in that country
tax haven
a country where the effective tax rate on a relevant item of income is very low or zero
reinsurance treaty
agreement among insurance companies that spreads the risk among its members; Under its terms, the lead underwriter can commit the resources of the entire group after negotiating the transaction with the U.S. investor.
Paris Convention
also known as the International Convention for the Protection of Industrial Property, guarantees "national treatment," also gives a patent holder in any signatory country a right of priority
Language politics
describes the situation, found in regions of a few countries, where laws require that companies conduct business in a certain language
jurisdiction ratione loci
geographic jurisdiction over the matter
comity
good relations among nations; A U.S. Court will refuse to inquire into the validity of any act of a foreign government.
Patent Law Treaties Implementation Act (PTLIA)
harmonizes U.S. law for design patents with the Geneva Act
Franchise tax laws
impose taxes based on the franchiser's worldwide operations even if its local operations fizzle
Bad faith
intentional wrongful behavior, but in the UDRP, it now includes some negligence without a finding of intent
Intellectual property rights (IPRs)
legal rights which result from intellectual activity in the industrial, scientific, literary, and artistic fields; The most common forms are 1) patents, 2) trademarks, 3) copyrights, and 4) trade secrets
License
limited permission to use the U.S. firm's trademarks, copyrights, or know-how in making products for sale in the vicinity of the foreign company's country
biofuels
liquid fuels created from processed or refined biomass
Design patents
patents protecting the ornamental features of an article of manufacture
foreign compulsion defense
permits US firms flexibility when the enforcement of US employment laws overseas would result in a violation of foreign law
Alien Tort Statute (ATS)
permits non-U.S. citizens to bring private causes of action in U.S. courts based on torts that violate norms of international law that are as widely accepted and definite as those recognized by Congress
Remediation of wastes
rendering them harmless to the environment
Tied-purchase clauses
require the franchisee to buy certain goods from the franchiser
Uniform Domain Name Dispute Resolution Policy (UDRP)
set forth general "first to file" rules for domain names, but accepted bad-faith filings
climate change
significant and lasting change in weather patterns
Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT)
supplemented the Paris Convention by establishing a centralized utility patent application process
creeping expropriation
the effect of laws and regulations that subject the investor to discriminatory taxes, legislative controls over management of the firm, price controls, forced employment of nationals, license cancellation, and restrictions on currency convertibility
trade creditors
the entities that sell supplies or services to the venture
eminent domain, or condemnation
the government's power to take private property for public purposes
Drawbacks to TRIPS
- The developed nations accepted an "escape clause" to the minimum substantive standards in Article 8 of TRIPS. Signatory nations may exercise the escape clause, as necessary to protect ordre public or morality. - Emerging nations were concerned that TRIPS was being narrowly interpreted in a way that unduly limited the supply of generic drugs.
New Zealand - Comite Interprofessional du Vin de Champagne v. Wineworths Group, Ltd.
A group of champagne producers from the French department of Champagne, sought an injunction to prevent the Australians from "passing off" Australian sparkling wine as wine actually produced in the region of Champagne. Decision: The court enjoined the Australian defendants from using the word champagne in New Zealand.
Apple, Inc. v. Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.
A jury awarded Apple more than $1 billion in damages for infringement against Samsung. Samsung filed a motion with the court for the reduction of the jury award and for a new trial, and Apple filed a motion for supplemental damages. Decision: The Court ordered a new trial on damages, amounting to a significant amount of money being stricken from the jury's award.
Prior-approval schemes
Requiring substantive prior approval from a government agency is a more intrusive type of regulatory scheme and is indicative of protectionism.
hazardous characteristics
The Basel Convention regulates the transport of wastes that display certain hazardous characteristics, such as flammability or toxicity.
Berne Convention v. Paris Convention
Unlike the Paris Convention, the Berne Convention... - Requires all signatory countries to enact certain minimum substantive laws, and - There is no filing requirement. The Berne Convention signatories agree to grant national treatment to copyright holders from other signatories automatically from the moment of creation rather than the time of filing.
soft currency
a currency that is not freely exchangeable for currencies of other nations
Utility patent
a patent that protects the way an invention is used and works
forum non conveniens
a rule that allows a court, in equity, to decline jurisdiction over a case when it believes that the matter would be better resolved in another forum
value-added tax (VAT)
a tax on the value added at every stage of the production process
International Anti-Counterfeiting Coalition
a trade group that pressures governments to enforce IPR laws
bona fide occupational qualification (BFOQ) defense
both in Title VII and the ADEA, provides that an employer may engage in discrimination if it is "reasonably necessary to the normal operation of the particular business of enterprise"
privatization
can be accomplished by the outright sale of assets or ownership interests in a state-owned enterprise being sold to private investors, by granting concessions that allow private entities to operate and derive a profit from state-owned infrastructure, through the widespread issuance of vouchers representing a right to profits to all citizens, or simply by allowing new private businesses to form in a sector formerly reserved to the government
Berne Convention
deals with the granting of copyrights among signatory nations
barter
direct exchange of goods for goods (or services)
Geneva Act
establishes a single standard application and single design patent filing process
Copyright Term Extension Act, or the Mickey Mouse Protection Act
extended copyright terms in the United States, and effectively delayed the date at which all copyrighted works would enter the public domain
genetically modified organism (GMO)
organisms that have been genetically altered
repatriated
paid out to the U.S. person, typically in the form of a dividend
traditional theory
prohibits all takings of foreign property
nationalization
taking of an entire industry or a natural resource as part of a plan to restructure the nation's economic system
expropriation
taking of an isolated item of property
Two principal markets provide private political risk insurance...
- Lloyd's of London and other insurance syndicates - Reinsurance treaties
Risks associated with IPR transfers?
- Losing control of the IPRs - Helping to establish a competitor
Notification-registration schemes
A notification-registration system is more open to technological transfer. *Some provisions of a registered contract might not be enforceable under a country's laws.* *A danger in notification-registration countries is that some provisions of a registered contract might not be enforceable under a country's laws.*
Aufsichtsrat, Vorstand
A number of countries also require substantial employee representation on the corporate board of directors. This is often accomplished by mandating a two-tiered board: a large supervisory board, known as the Aufsichtsrat, and a management board, known as the Vorstand. The Aufsichtsrat is responsible for representing shareholder interests, while the Vorstand manages the firm from day to day.
passive investment
A passive investment can involve either a passive debt investment - making a loan to a foreign business - or a passive equity investment - purchasing an equity interest in the foreign business as a portfolio investment that does not allow for control of the business.
INA Corp v. Islamic Republic of Iran
A subsidiary of INA Corp, INA International, acquired shares of an Iranian insurance company. Later, Iran's government nationalized the insurance industry, and INA International sued for the going value of its shares. Decision - INA Corporation was awarded the amount it sought plus simple interest from the date of nationalization.
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission v. Arabian American Oil Co.
Aramco and its subsidiary's principal place of business is Saudi Arabia, but it is licensed to do business in Texas. Boureslan was hired by ASC as a cost engineer in Houston, then transferred at his own request to work for Aramco in Saudi Arabia until he was discharged. He sought relief under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act on the ground that he was harassed and ultimately discharged on the basis of his race and religion. Decision - The petitioners failed to present sufficient affirmative evidence that Congress intended Title VII to apply abroad.
Pulp Mills on River Uruguay (Argentina v. Uruguay)
Argentina brought a complaint before the ICJ against Uruguay. Argentina alleged that Uruguay had breached obligations to provide notice and consult with the CARU before authorizing the construction of paper mills on the banks of the river. Decision - The ICJ found that Uruguay had not engaged in any substantive violations of its statutory duties. The ICJ denied Argentina's claim for reparations.
Whaling in the Antarctic (Australia v Japan: New Zealand intervening)
Australia alleged and presented evidence to the effect that Japan was issuing permits for commercial purposes under the pretext of research, thereby violating the Convention. Australia also alleged that Japan was violating international environmental convention by failing to take appropriate step to assure that its whaling activities not cause damage to the environment of other states or areas. Decision - The Court orders that Japan revoke any extant authorization, permit, or license to kill, take or treat whales in relation to JARPA II, and refrain from granting any further permits under the Convention.
In re Independent Service Organization Antitrust Litigation CSU et al. v. Xerox Corporation
CSU sued Xerox, claiming that the copier manufacturer's refusal to sell patented parts and copyrighted manuals and to license copyrighted software violated antitrust laws. Decision: The Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit held that the copier manufacturer's refusal to sell or license its patented parts did not violate antitrust laws.
OBB Personenverkehr AG v. Sachs
Carol Sachs, a resident of California, purchased a Eurail pass on the Internet through a Massachusetts-based travel agent. Eurail passes allow their holders unlimited passage for a set period of time on participating railways, including OBB Personenverkehr. As she attempted to board a OBB train, she fell onto the platform, and the moving train crushed her legs. Sachs sued OBB in the United States. Decision - Although the plaintiff purchased a Eurail pass in the United States, her lawsuit is not "based upon a commercial activity carried on in the United States by a foreign state" because the conduct constituting the gravamen of her suit occurred in Austria. The case was dismissed for lack of subject matter jurisdiction.
Fair, reasonable, and nondiscriminatory (FRAND) terms
Certain courts have imposed mandatory licensing for patented technologies that are essential to the implementation of a standard. - Can significantly reduce the risk of patent "hold-up" and the perceived advantages of litigation, for example, keeping competitors out of the marketplace
Hukou
China presents one of the most serious forms of institutional discrimination through the Hukuo. Hukou is the registration of households. The system categorizes citizens according to their place of residence, essentially dividing the population into agriculture and urban. It is a mechanism for determining social entitlements.
Europe has a centralized multinational trademark registration system, called the
Community Trademark Regulation (CTM), renamed the European Union Trademark (EUTM)
Compaq Computer Corp. Subsidiaries v. Commissioner of Internal Revenue
Compaq manufactures PCs. PCAs are the electronic circuitry inside a PC's central processing unit that allows the PC to operate. Compaq set up a PCA manufacturing subsidiary in Singapore and purchased PCAs from said subsidiary at actual market prices. The IRS claimed that such pricing resulted in too much profit being left in low-tax Singapore and declared a deficiency in Compaq's consolidated returns. Decision - The Tax Court ordered the IRS to reduce its deficiency notices.
Biopiracy
Corporation from more developed nations extract plants and animals indigenous to the emerging nation for research (with the help of local knowledge), alter the plant or animal, and then obtain patents related to this research without providing the host country with compensation or affordable access to the inventions.
Certain Activities Carried Out by Nicaragua in the Border Area (Costa Rica v. Nicaragua)
Costa Rica sued Nicaragua for its alleged military invasion and occupation of Costa Rican territory, during which it dug a channel in and dredged the San Juan River. Costa Rica argued that the dredging of the river violated international environmental law. Decision - The Court concluded that, although Costa Rica had a right to be free from environmental damage caused by another nation, the evidence did not show that Nicaragua breached its international environmental law obligations by engaging in dredging activities in the San Juan River.
currency swaps
Currency swaps may be purchased from financial intermediaries to hedge against fluctuation risk. For a price implicit in the negotiated future exchange rate,k the currency swap transfers the risk of fluctuation to the intermediary, leaving the investor with only the risk of the business itself.
European Patent Convention
Europe has a consolidated multinational patent application, the European Patent Convention, and it was enhanced when the member states signed the Agreement Relating to Community Patents.
friendship, commerce, and navigation (FCN) treaties
FCN treaties between the United States and other nations allow a foreign employer to choose its own executives and experts to run its operations in the other signatory nations.
currency exchange rights
If the investor proposes bringing a desired industry to the soft-currency nation, it can negotiate with the government in advance for preferential access to hard currency. The resulting rights can help solve the inconvertibility problem for the foreign investor.
buy-back agreement
In a buy-back agreement, the provider of the equipment or technology used in manufacturing will receive, as its payment, a portion of the goods manufactured by the supplier's equipment or the factory in which the equipment is installed.
parallel exchange
In some soft-currency countries, foreign investors form consortia to trade local soft currency, in effect forming a private parallel exchange. In this arrangement, the investors - all committed to the local inconvertibility risk - spread that risk over a larger group.
inconvertibility, or nontransfer insurance policy
Investors can purchase such policies to insure against blockages by foreign governments. Inconvertibility insurance is a type of political risk insurance.
Kathleen Hill & Ann Stapleton Revenue Comm'rs & Dpt. of Finance
It involves two government workers in Ireland. Irish government employees have "job-sharing," in which if employees don't want to work full-time, both employees split the hours, benefits, and salary. When they stopped job-sharing and came back to work full-time, they received less than they received before they started job-sharing. Indirect sex discrimination? The EU Court of Justice sent the case back to the Irish government and requested an explanation for why the individual government workers received less than they did before they started job-sharing.
Kochi Hoso (Broadcasting Co.)
Kochi Hoso, a Japanese radio broadcasting firm, clearly specified that tardiness for a broadcast was cause for dismissal. The plaintiff, a radio announcer, was tardy twice, and Kochi Hoso discharged the plaintiff on the grounds of the rule in place. The plaintiff sought reinstatement, arguing that the discharge was unreasonable or contrary to public policy. Decision - The Supreme Court found no reasonable cause for termination and ordered that the radio announcer be reinstated in his job.
Mobile Communication Service Inc. v. WebReg, RN
Mobilcom contended that the domain name consisted entirely of its trademark, that WebReg lacked any rights or legitimate interests in that name, that there was no evidence that WebReg was making a legitimate noncommercial or fair use of that domain name, and that the domain name was registered and being used in bad faith. Decision: The Panel orders that the Domain Name <mobilcom.com> be transferred to Mobilcom.
Skeena River Fishery: Canada
NCSA alleged that the Canadian Department of Fisheries and Oceans (DFO) was failing to effectively enforce its environmental laws in relation to commercial fishing licenses for salmon in the Skeena River. Decision - The Secretariat concluded that the submission warranted a response from the Government of Canada.
Kiobel v. Royal Dutch Petroleum Co.
Nigerian citizens alleged that Royal Dutch Petroleum Co. aided and abetted human rights abuses committed by the Nigerian government. A foreigner sued a foreign company in U.S. courts, citing the Alien Tort Statute (ATS)... The U.S. court dismissed the case!
Circle of Poison
No law exists that forbids manufacturers from exporting banned pesticides to countries with less stringent or poorly enforced laws. U.S.-banned pesticides are exported to developing nations and are used on crops, which are then exported back to the United States.
Duncan v. American Intern. Group, Inc.
Plaintiff Duncan, a U.S. citizen, was hired by AIC, a Bermudan corporation located in Bermuda. She alleged that her supervisor ridiculed her because she was infertile and reduced her job responsibilities, all of which ultimately led to her termination. Duncan brought an employment discrimination suit against AIG, a Delaware corporation that owned 100% of AIC. AIG moved for summary judgment, arguing that any discriminatory acts were undertaken by AIC, and that AIG did not control AIC's actions. Decision - The Court granted AIG's motion for summary judgment.
Malgorzata Jany & Others v. Staatssecretaris van Justitie
Polish nationals and Czech nations had established their residence in the Netherlands, working as window prostitutes in Amsterdam. The Netherlands rejected their application for residence permits on the ground that prostitution is a prohibited activity or at least not a socially acceptable form of work and cannot be regarded as an actual profession. Decision - It's acceptable for a state to have moral concerns, but the same standards that apply to native Dutch sex workers should also apply to Polish and Czesh sex workers. Polish and Czech sex workers were granted residency.
Improvements, "grant back"
Reasoning that the licensee would not have had the opportunity to develop these useful technologies without the know-how supplied by the licensor, the licensor may seek a grant back to itself of ownership in or at least the right to us-- often without compensation--such new technology.
TVBO Production Limited v. Australia Sky Net Pty Limited
TVB, based in Hong Kong, owned a Chinese language miniseries called Twin of Brothers. TVB's complaint alleged that four respondents worked together to intercept and rebroadcast TVB's miniseries to Australia in violation of Australia's copyright laws, as well as international copyright laws. Decision: The Court found the defendants guilty of copyright infringement and granted TVBO its requested relief.
Diamond v. Chakrabarty
The Court was faced with the question of whether the creation of a live, human-made organism was patentable. Decision: The Court allowed the patenting of living organisms in the United States.
European Commission Proceedings against Czech Republic on the Race Equality Directive and the Employment Equality Directive
The European Commission began an infringement proceeding against the Czech Republic for noncompliance with the Race Equality Directive and a separate proceeding for noncompliance with the Employment Equality Directive. Both cases were eventually closed after the Czech Republic adopted a comprehensive Anti-discrimination Act in compliance with EU requirements.
prior informed consent (PIC)
The Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA) requires that before a U.S. seller can export pesticides that are not registered for use in the United States, it must obtain the PIC of the purchaser and give notice to the appropriate official in the receiving country.
European Communities - Measures Affecting Asbestos and Asbetos-Containing Products
The French government instituted a ban on asbestos products, and Canada, as the second largest asbestos producer in the World, challenged the prohibition in the WTO. It claimed that the French ban violated several articles of the GATT in addition to the TBT agreement, which ensures that domestic product standards and regulations do not create unnecessary trade barriers. Decision - The Appellate Body concluded that there was no "reasonably available alternative" to France's chosen method of preventing asbestos-caused harm. It upheld the Panel's finding that France had acted consistently with international trade law.
United States - Import Prohibition of Certain Shrimp and Shrimp Products Recourse to Article 21.5 of the DSU by Malaysia
The U.S. Department of State was to certify whether nations that export shrimp to the United States had adopted programs to reduce the incidental caption of sea turtles in their shrimp fisheries that were comparable to the program in effect in the United States. If the State Department did not certify a nation, that nation would be banned from exporting shrimp to the United States. Decision: The WTO Appellate Body found that the United States's de facto insistence on a U.S. excluder device was "unjustifiable discrimination" and therefore recommended that the United States bring Section 609 into conformity with the GATT.
Doha Declaration on the TRIPS Agreement and Public Health
The WTO ministers stressed the importance of the implementation and interpretation of TRIPS in a manner that supports public health through improving access to existing medicines and formulating new medicines.
ADC Affiliate et al. v. The Republic of Hungary
The claimants were foreign entities that had invested in the expansion of an airport near Hungary, then owned by the Government of Hungary. Then, the government enacted a decree that resulted in the privatization of the airport, effectively terminating the claimants' long-term leases. Arbitration against Hungary ensued. Decision - The ICSID panel ruled that this was a violation of the agreement with the investors, which took the investors' property, an unlawful expropriation.
Right of Priority
The date of an applicant's foreign application is deemed to be the same as the date of the applicant's original application on the same invention, so long as the foreign application was filed before the first anniversary of the original application.
W.S. Kirkpatrick v. Environmental Tectronics Corp.
The government of Nigeria awarded a military contract to W.S. Kirkpatrick & Co. The losing bidder, Environmental Tectronics Corporation (ETC) investigated and learned that the winner had bribed key government officials who were responsible for making the award. ETC sued Kirkpatrick, and Kirkpatrick moved to dismiss the lawsuit on the basis that the Act of State Doctrine prohibited the federal court from considering the matter. Decision - The U.S. Supreme Court permitted ETC to proceed with its lawsuit against Kirkpatrick.
Judgment of February 23, 1988
The plaintiff, an owner of real estate in Austria near the former Czechslovakia, brought action in Austrian courts seeking to prevent the construction of a nuclear plant 115 kilometers away in Czechoslovakia. The plaintiff alleged that the plant had not been properly licensed and that the effects of the radionuclides generated during the plant's normal operation, as well as those that would be released in a nuclear accident, threatened his real estate. Decision - The Supreme Court of Austria reversed the finding of the Court of Second Instance that Austrian courts lacked jurisdiction over the plaintiff's claim.
Sumitomo Electric Industries Ltd.
This case was brought by women hired in the 1960s. The only positions available for women at the time were clerical positions with no opportunities for advancement. It was recommended that the company work with these women and compensate them for 40+ years of work experience. Settlements and some promotions were granted.
Gray market, parallel trade
This importation of merchandise produced and sold abroad and then imported back into the United States for sale in competition with the U.S. trademark owner. The products imported back are GRAY MARKET GOODS or PARALLEL IMPORTS. Holders of trademarks oppose the gray marketers, while consumers are generally fond of the gray market, as it enables them to obtain goods of the same or comparable quality as well-known brands at a lower price.
Franchising
an arrangement in which the licensor permits the licensee to sell certain goods under the licensor's trademark or service mark under the terms of a franchising agreement
transfer pricing
an international tax problem; There is large incentive to shift income from high-tax jurisdictions to low-tax jurisdictions. This is problematic because a very large proportion of international trade occurs between related parties that are free to fix prices to one another because market forces do not discipline the prices.
political risk analysis
another form of proactive management: The enterprise retains a firm of its own personnel to analyze a host country's risk of nationalization/expropriation.
import substitution rights
available when the new venture will manufacture a product in the soft-currency country that the nation had previously imported
Mahoney v. RFE/RL, Inc.
concerns foreign compulsion defense; RFE/RL, Inc. is a Delaware corporation that primarily does business in Munich, Germany. The company entered into a collective bargaining agreement with unions representing its employees in Munich. One of the provisions of the labor contract required employees to retire at the age of 65, directly contradicting the U.S. Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA). Both U.S. plaintiffs were discharged from their labor contract at the age of 65. Decision - The Court of Appeals remanded the case to the District Court with instructions to dismiss the matter, deeming the collective bargaining agreement legal and enforceable at the time of the plaintiffs' terminations.
EC Council Regulation 2081/92
creates restrictive rules to protect trademarks and geographical indications and foodstuffs; was investigated, found to have failed to provide national treatment to non-EC nations, consequently required non-EC nations to adopt a system of GI protection equivalent to the EC's system and offer reciprocal protection to EC GIs
Gatt Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS)
cured the defects of the Paris and Berne Conventions by 1) requiring its signatories to enact minimum substantive standards of protection and 2) create a viable enforcement mechanism via the WTO dispute settlement process
private political risk insurance
political risk insurance provided by private insurers
insurance syndicates
pools of money provided by investors to insure specific projects, provide such insurance on case-by-case basis
currency risk
potential threat to a firm's operations in a country due to fluctuations in the local currency's exchange rate
Anticybersquatting Consumer Protection Act
prohibits registering, trafficking in, or using a domain name with bad faith intent to profit from the goodwill of a trademark owner
Section 337 of the Tariff Act
prohibits the importation of articles that infringe a U.S. patent, trademark, or copyright
export credit agencies
provide export financing or credit insurance, promote investment for their own countries
countertrade
reciprocal arrangement between buyer and seller for the sale of goods or services intended to minimize the outflow of foreign exchange from the buyer's country
net book value
reflects the tax-related depreciated cost of assets without regard to whether there has in fact been true depreciation in value
