Alt Legal WebinarOf Particular Import: Protecting Brands from Infringing Imports
Alt Legal Team | June 07, 2023
This webinar was recorded on July 27, 2023.
While counterfeiting has been around for as long as genuine goods have been produced, the forces of globalization and technological evolution have increased the scale of the problem in recent years. Several important tools are available to help U.S. brands protect their trademarks in today’s increasingly complex and risky international trade environment.
During this webinar, Harris Bricken attorneys Fred Rocafort and Robert Kossick discuss how brand owners can record their marks with U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) to help enforce their intellectual property. They also discuss how international trademark registration in key overseas markets and manufacturing locations can strengthen brands’ defenses against counterfeits and other forms of infringement. Topics include:
- The dangers of infringing activity overseas—and what CBP and the U.S. Government are doing about it
- Infringement levels recognized by CBP and how the agency handles each
- What happens when CBP finds a potentially infringing good at the border
- The process for recording trademarks with CBP
- Protections in sales markets and manufacturing locations abroad
View the webinar recording here (free registration required.)
Download the presentation materials here.
Speakers
Fred Rocafort, International Practice Group Chair at Harris Bricken
Fred Rocafort leads Harris Bricken’s intellectual property practice and is the coordinator of the firm’s international team. He is dedicated to helping businesses from around the world and across industries protect their brands as they grow. Many of Fred’s clients operate in spaces that constitute new frontiers for IP law, such as cannabis, psychedelics, and Web3. Prior to joining Harris Bricken, Fred worked overseas for more than a decade, first as a U.S. consular officer in China, where he advocated for fairer treatment of American companies and citizens and stronger intellectual property rights enforcement. He later led the legal team at a Hong Kong-based brand protection consultancy, spending most of his time out in the field, protecting clients against counterfeiters and fraudsters across Asia and beyond. He is a regular commentator on brand protection matters and serves as an expert witness on IP-related cases.
Robert Kossick, Customs/Trade Attorney at Harris Bricken
Robert Kossick is a Board Certified International Attorney, Licensed Customs Broker, and Certified Export Specialist whose practice focuses on the planning, compliance, enforcement, and security dimensions of U.S. import and export transactions. With over twenty years of professional experience, Robert brings seasoned, specialized, and multicultural know-how and perspective to the analysis and resolution of customs and trade issues.