Industry committee  That's a difficult question for me to answer. There are a lot of complex issues that we are dealing with and it's not always clear. The frameworks are taken as a whole, and it's kind of tough to take little bits of them and compare. I can point out a couple of differences. Proba

Industry committee  It's a feature of the legal framework.

Industry committee  As part of its work, when the Department of Foreign Affairs is considering a trade agreement it goes out and asks Canadian businesses what they are looking for and what their concerns are. It builds that in. Then the Department of Industry—in particular where I'm situated, which

Industry committee  I'm trying to recall if the Canadian Federation of Independent Business has made a statement on this. In fact, I cannot recall right now, but that would be what I would look for.

Industry committee  That's absolutely true. The one element is that, under the TRIPS Agreement of the WTO, if a country wasn't living up to its obligations—which is different from one company in one country suing another company in another country—then there are mechanisms under the WTO TRIPS.

Industry committee  It's the national framework that the patent was issued in, and they would pursue litigation. In answer to your question on whether there is an international impartial body, the answer is no.

Industry committee  It's consistent with the idea that the frameworks are all national.

Industry committee  I can begin with that one. International negotiations are led by the Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade. In the context of negotiations that are ongoing, I can't really talk about that.

Industry committee  In the NAFTA, for example, there is an IP chapter. Within the context of the Canada-EU scoping agreement, which you can find on the DFAIT website, IP is in the joint report that both countries did at the outset to say, “This is what we're talking about”. There's an interest tha

Industry committee  I'll start on that one. I don't think the system promotes litigation, but the system is designed to provide private rights to businesses and people, and then it's up to the right holder to enforce his or her rights. What that means is that, when you get legitimate disagreements

Industry committee  I'll let Denis answer.

Industry committee  I can perhaps start, and then perhaps my colleagues will want to join in. Just to answer the last question first, a patent that's granted in Canada applies in Canada. These IP rights apply in the country that they're given in, and that's what's underlying the idea that you paten

Industry committee  The enforcement of patents in foreign countries is important for exporters. We have some data, actually. I don't know if I can bring it up quickly. Yes, here it is. The RCMP has reported over $76 million in retail seizures in Canada, in 2011, of counterfeit goods. The OECD estim

Industry committee  Again, that's a very good question. The patent is something that can be sold or assigned or licensed. That's provided for, and it's kind of intrinsic to the idea of taking an invention then marketing it. With respect to the question of patent portfolios moving from Canada to th

Industry committee  Yes, the sale of just a patent portfolio without a controlling interest in a corporation wouldn't trigger the Investment Canada Act.