The Procedural Foundations of I̶n̶t̶e̶l̶l̶e̶c̶t̶u̶a̶l̶ ̶P̶r̶o̶p̶e̶r̶t̶y̶ Information Regulation

Abstract

In the academy, legal scholarship on intellectual property, or “IP,” abounds, most of it focusing on the substance of IP. Far less, however, is written about the procedural aspects of IP. This Article focuses on the often-ignored procedural foundations of IP and suggests—at a minimum—that procedure so thoroughly pervades IP that IP’s true foundations might be in procedure rather than substance. Considering “IP as procedure” may further allow us to recognize that IP procedures may need to be reconceptualized within a broader field of information regulation procedures.

Note: Article selected as one of best IP articles of past year, for reprint in 2020 volume of Intellectual Property Law Review (Thomson Reuters).

Keywords: intellectual property, IP, copyright, patent, trademark, trade secret, procedure, information law, information regulation