Battle of Lateralisms: Intellectual Property and Trade

World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) carried on its administrative functions under the treaties, and has accumulated a large staff in Geneva, a primary function of which is to spread the virtues of intellectual property to the developing world. Intellectual property rights have their own history, institutional structure and constituencies; furthermore, they may involve greater conceptual complexity than many trade issues. Primarily bilateral negotiations have been successful because the United States (US) is able to place intellectual property rights in a larger trade context. The US has negotiated one-on-one with three country groups or countries: the newly industrialized countries (NICs), the less developed countries (LDCs), and Japan. Many LDCs continue to resist the expansion of patent protection. The Japanese patent system is often used as an example of non-tariff barriers employed by Japan. US-Japanese intellectual property negotiations are complicated by the complexities of the legal issues involved.