etlw final

In 2000, the European Union adopted Council Directive 2000/78/EC which prohibits discrimination based on the following:

religions/belief, age, disability, race/ethnic origin, gender/sexual orientation

remediation of wastes

rendering them harmless to the environment

The GATT Agreement on TRIPPS

requires every member of the World Trade Organization (WTO) to abide by the Paris and Berne Conventions - including recent protocols to those treaties - and apply the treaties' national treatment requirements so that all foreign IP owners receive the same protection as local nationals. It establishes 50 year copyright protection.

Field of use limitations

restrict applications for which the license may employ the IP

In 1999, the US passed the 1st legislation to curb cybersquatting, which is

the registering of a domain name with the intent to profit from the goodwill of trademark belonging to another.

In China, Hukou is

the registration of households. it is a method for determining social entitlements.

Green Belt Movement

focused on tree planting to conserve the environment and stem the effects of deforestation and desertification

The importation of merchandise produced and sold abroad and then imported back in the US for sale in competition with the US trademark owner is referred to as the

gray market or parallel imports.

Under the FCPA, "any facilitating or expediting payment ... the purpose to which is to expedite or secure the performance of routine government actions," is called the

grease payment exception.

The Basel Convention

hampered by a lack of consensus on a number of critical definition. There is no widely accepted definition of what is "hazardous" Nor is there universal agreement on what management is sufficient for remediation of wastes.

The Patent Cooperation Treaty (PTC)

has been signed by 142 nations. A PCT application is filed on a standard form with the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO).

The world bank

has said that if it finds evidence of corruption in any project it finances, it will cancel the project.

North American Commission for Environmental Cooperation (CEC)

headquartered in Montreal, determines whether any part to NAFTA has shown a "persistent pattern of failure" to "effectively enforce its environmental law"

best practices for US businesspersons with regard to being against foreign corruption

1) Avoid making direct payments to government officials, other than payments associated with the most ministerial aspects of clearing customs. 2)Foreign agents should be carefully selected and even more carefully paid 3)Avoid premium transactions in nations with suspect reputations.

Under the US Worker Adjustment Retraining, and Notification Act, companies with more than

100 employees may be required to give 60 days notice to close a plant.

In the European Union, women get a minimum

14 weeks of maternity leave and an allowance of 75 or 80% of net salary.

According to the International Trade Union Confederation, women on average earn

18% less than their male counterparts worldwide.

Computer programs are protected as literary works within the meaning of Art. 2 of the

Berne Convention. Such protection applies to the expression of a computer program in any form.

For 2 decades, the US was alone in forbidding its citizens from bribing foreign officials. Indeed, some nations permitted tax deductions for such payments. However, the tide finally turned: in February 1999, the

Convention on combating bribery of foreign public officials in International Business transactions (OECD Convention) became effective.

The battle of "geographical indications" is not limited to the developed worlds of North America, Australia and Europe and is not limited to wines and liquors. The Development Agenda of the Doha Ministerial Conference included some issues relating to geographical indications:

Creating a multi-register for wines and spirits; Extending the higher or enhanced level of protection accorded to wine and spirits to other products.

In december 1977, Congress passed the world's first law outlawing citizens' bribes to officials of another state, the

Foreign Corrupt Practices Act

China's 2008 Labor Contract Law was amended in 2012 to require that temporary laborers receive welfare and benefits the same as their permanent counterparts. This will have a direct impact on

Foreign-invested Enterprises (FIE) which by law must hire these types of employees through "labor dispatches"

The first international property treaty was the International convention for the protection of industrial property, better known as the

Paris Convention.

super session

Nations often enact laws calculated to protect local representatives. Such laws may supercede the arrangement between the principal and the representative.

2 major problems with this convention are:

The convention does not require any minimum substantive standard of patent protection; It has no enforcement mechanism

Differences in Regulatory Schemes

The cost benefit analysis for any environmental modification often varies from country to country, Countries that are happy with the economic status quo are more inclined to favor environmental measure, Some nations lack the technological infrastructure to produce goods without pollution

There are 3 principle defenses to US challenges to employment decisions abroad. they are:

The decisions is made by a foreign person not controlled by an American employer; The US EEO law conflicts with a host country's laws, so there is "foreign compulsion" ;The performance of the job requires a BFOQ

circle of poison

US banned pesticides are exported to developing nations and are used on crops which are then exported back to the United States. These pesticides then reenter the United States as residues on food products

In Japan, an individual is expected to hold a job for the same company for

a lifetime

Since 1996, the Community Trademark Regulation,

administered by the Office for Harmonization in the Internal Market (OHIM), has allowed a single trademark registration enforceable through the EU. It also provides for uniform enforcement authority, allowing infringement by any member state to be prosecuted through this office.

The United States

almost certainly has the world's most comprehensive set of laws against discrimination of all sorts in employment.

The Paris Convention guarantees that each signatory country will receive the same treatment and priority as those from domestic applicants. By implementing this principle of national treatment

an animating principle of all IP treaties - the Paris Convention targeted discrimination against foreigners in obtaining patents.

In China, employers often attempt to preempt organization of workers, and will set up a

company union.

greenhouse gas emissions

concentrated gasses in the Earth's atmosphere derived from the burning of fossil fuels.

Convention on Environment Protection and Sustainable Development of the Carpathian (The Carpathian Convention)

creates treaty obligation among the signatories to protect, maintain, and sustainably manage the natural resources of that mountain region. The treaty specifically adopts 1. The precaution and prevention principles 2. The "polluter pays" principle 3. Public participation and stakeholder involvement in development initiatives in each country.

The Berne Convention

deals with the granting of copyrights among signatory nations. It does require all 164 signatory nations to afford foreigners the same rights as its own citizens and enact minimum substantive laws.

The retention of a representative often triggers tax and labor requirements. The burdensomeness of these regulations increases upon a finding by the host country that the representative is a

dependent agent.

The TRIPPS Agreement (Art.64) provides a mandatory mechanism for resolving disputes between WTO countries the WTO

dispute settlement process

People in the US, perhaps the most capitalist of nations,

do not commonly believe that anyone is entitled to a job.

When exploitation of the licensed IP requires significant financial or other resources of the licensee, it will often demand

exclusive rights in the IP within some geographic area in order to enhance its chances of earning an adequate return on investment.

The extent to which US discrimination laws apply abroad and how such can be enforced is known as

extraterritoriality

Agency Relationship

is a business arrangement in which one party performs functions on behalf and at the direction of another party, the principal.

Franchise

is an arrangement in which the licensor permits the licensee to sell certain goods under the licensor's trademark or service mark.

The Puerto Rico Dealer's Act prohibits the principal from terminating the agreement or from refusing to renew without

just cause.

For the past fifteen years, most of the trade agreements that the US has signed have included

labor standards

Single European Act

made the environment an official responsibility of the EU amending section 13 of the Treaty of Rome with a new Title VII on the environment

Neither Title VII nor ADEA apply to

non-citizens employed outside the US, but both statutes apply to non-citizens legally employed within the US.

binding adjudication

not common because in the absence of treaties such as those recently implemented with europe the alleged polluter would not consent to jurisdiction in such cases.

In Japan, union leadership is a stepping stone to management. Nearly 15%

of union officials rise to serve as executives of the company.

independent contractors

often called independent agents outside the US, perform general tasks for the business, but retain substantial discretion and independence on carrying them out.

The European Union Council Directive 86/653

on agency requires each EU member state to pass consistent national laws on representatives. These includes a few mandatory provisions. Under the economic conditions alarm - the principal must notify the agent if it expects that the agent's volume of business - and thus the agent's commission - will be "significantly lower" than what the agent normally expects.

A number of countries require substantial employee representation

on the corporate board of directors.

One of the founding concepts of libertarian capitalism is caveat emptor,

or "let the buyer beware"

genetically modified organisms

organisms that have been genetically altered. IN the EU all of this along with irradiated food are considered "new food" and subject to extensive, case by case, science based food evaluation by the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA).

The Alien Tort Statute

permits non-US citizens to bring private causes of action in US court based on torts that violate norms of international law that are as widely accepted ad definite as those recognized by congress when the law was passed in 1789.

3 basic types of regulatory schemes provide the format for IP transfer agreements. Requiring substantive

prior approval from a government is a more intrusive type of regulatory scheme. A notification-registration system is more open to technological transfer. Some countries have no regulation.

If at least one of the applicants named in the PCT is a national or resident of a PCT signatory, the PCT gives the application a

priority claim on the invention in all signatory states.

The FCPA's antibribery provisions

prohibits US firms from "corruptly" paying or offering to pay a "foreign official" for assistance in obtaining or retaining business.

The Anticybersquatting Consumer Protection Act

prohibits registering, trafficking in, or using the domain name in bad faith.

The American Clean Energy and Security Act of 2009

proposed a nationwide cap and trade regime

cap and trade regime

proposed by The American Clean Energy and Security Act of 2009. one in which all energy producers have a "cap" on the gases that they can produce, but can trade with others to get more "cap room: aiming for a 17% reduction in greenhouse gas emission

To prevent devaluation of its trademark, the licensor will typically condition its use on the licensee's observance of certain

quality standards

Civil and criminal penalties under the FCPA and foreign antibribery statutes are not the only possible legal sanctions for investors who use bribes to induce foreign public officials to award them contracts. In the past few years, international tribunals have

refused to enforce contracts based on bribery.

In many countries, the law actually requires discrimination based on

religion or national origin.

Owners of intellectual property (IP) rights transfer them for a variety of reasons. The US firm might for a fee called a

royalty grant a license to a foreign company, the purpose of which is to provide limited permission to use the US firm's trademark, copyrights,or know-how in making products for sale in the vicinity of the foreign company's country.

Under European Union Council Directive 86/653, parties may agree to a fixed

term contract. If the parties continue their relationship after the stated term of the contract, it becomes an - evergreen contract.

In the US, courts may dismiss claims under forum non conveniens

that the US court was not a convenient forum to hear the claim.

Deforestation

the clearing of forested land for non forested use

prior informed consent

the cornerstone of US environmental regulation of the export of hazardous materials

Trademark prosecution is usually based on the law of

the country where registration is sought

Many countries place restrictions on "sin" products, the 2 most obvious being

tobacco and alcohol.

In the UK, the law mandates that an employer consult with the appropriate

trade union before making a dismissal.

Friendship, commerce, and navigation

treaties between the US and other nations, which allow a foreign employer to choose its own executives and experts to run its operations in the other signatory nations, have come under greater scrutiny as to which levels and positions the foreign executives can occupy.

Some cultures are less tolerant than others of puffing

vagueness and exaggeration- in advertising.

The OECD Convention requires that the transnational bribery laws apply to "any person". In order to implement this requirement, the FCPA

was amended in 1998 by adding new language that provides for jurisdiction over non US persons who commit a violation "while in the territory of the US"

Desertification

when a dry region becomes increasingly arid, losing water, and vegetation

Nations engage in biopiracy

when they extract native or indigenous plants and animals for research, alter the plant or animal (such as through genetic engineering), and then obtain patents related to this research without providing the host country with compensation or affordable access to the inventions.

Under the alternative fines act,

which applies to all crimes that resulted in a gain to the criminal, the individual could be fined up to twice the amount of benefit sought to be obtained by making the corrupt payment.

In october 1997, Congress passed the Sanders Amendment,

which bans the import of any product made by forced child labor.