Intellectual Property Protection Act of 2007 submitted to Congress

Intellectual Property Protection Act of 2007

The act is aimed to further enhance DoJ's ability to prosecute crimes concerning intellectual property rights.

To quote DoJ's press release,

"Among its many provisions, the Act includes measures that would:

1 Increase the maximum penalty for counterfeiting offenses from 10 years to 20 years imprisonment where the defendant knowingly or recklessly causes or attempts to cause serious bodily injury, and increase the maximum penalty to life imprisonment where the defendant knowingly or recklessly causes or attempts to cause death;

2 Provide stronger penalties for repeat-offenders of the copyright laws;

3 Implement broad forfeiture reforms to ensure the ability to forfeit property derived from or used in the commission of criminal intellectual property offenses;

4 Strengthen restitution provisions for certain intellectual property crimes (e.g., criminal copyright and DMCA offenses);

5 Ensure that the exportation and transhipment of copyright-infringing goods is a crime, just as the exportation of counterfeit goods is now criminal."


Some experts often refer to US's legislation when defending our own intellectual property policy. Unfortunately, their reference is wrong sometimes, making their argument weak and vulnerable.