On June 21, 2016, CincyIP welcomes Robert Lawson, of GE Aviation, for a discussion on the export of technology and corresponding intellectual property considerations.
Running afoul of export control laws is surprisingly easy. If an American inventor in his Cincinnati lab hands data related to a patent application to a visiting Chinese scientist, this may be an export of technology. Likewise, distributing or outsourcing information by email, surface mail, or the cloud to another country for patent application preparation purposes may be an export of technology.
Many U.S. companies fail to realize that some commercial technologies are subject to the International Trafficking in Arms Regulations (ITAR) or the Export Administration Regulations (EAR) as defense technologies. Technical data and information in patent applications may intersect with ITAR or EAR.
Violations of export control laws, even inadvertently, can result in stiff penalties and denial of export privileges, among other things. It is important for patent counsel to understand the intersection between patent and export controls to avoid any unintentional export violations.
This program will provide an overview of export control laws and the challenges that patent owners face. Topics include when and where export control issues arise, licensing issues, and suggestions of best practices for compliance with export control laws.
Robert Lawson is a 26 year veteran of GE Aviation, with degrees in Mechanical Engineering from Lehigh and Princeton Universities. He also holds a graduate degree in Mathematics from Miami University. During his 20 year technical career, Rob became involved in technology export controls, and transitioned to the legal organization in 2010, where he now leads International Trade Compliance for GE Aviation as part of a larger GE Corporate Compliance team. In his role, Rob supports export regulatory reform efforts with the US Government, export classification in the US and EU, as well as export licensing and internal compliance activities.
