Coinciding with Art Basel, the Miami-Dade Florida Association of Women Lawyers (FAWL) Young Lawyers Committee hosted a CLE lunch about the arts and intellectual property. One of the panels featured Professor J. Janewa Osei-Tutu, and attorneys FIU Law alumni Chris Sanchelima ’13 and Emilie Kennedy ’11.
Alumna Ingrid Benson-Villegas ’13 wrote the following story about the panel.
Concepts and Considerations in Art: An Intellectual Property Discussion
By Ingrid Benson-Villegas
The panel began with Professor Osei-Tutu, who introduced the idea that while the right to patent, trademark, or copyright protection is not typically considered a human right, provisions in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and other human rights instruments support the proposition that some aspects of what we understand to be copyright or patent protection are human rights. Framing patents and copyrights as property rights, natural rights, or human rights can impact their legal treatment.
Professor Osei-Tutu continued by raising the question of who should be compensated when an indigenous person or community seeks protection of traditional knowledge or indigenous artwork. Traditional knowledge is constantly being revised, improved, and regenerated by various persons. Therefore, it is a challenge to correctly identify the beneficiaries. Further, the World Intellectual Property Organization (“WIPO”) does not define the indigenous groups that could be covered by any potential international treaty, or other legal instrument that may be eventually agreed upon by WIPO Member states.
Chris Sanchelima continued the discussion as it transitioned to slogans. Nike’s imperative sentence “Just do it.” developed trademark rights when Nike began using the phrase to brand sporting equipment. It is used to indicate to consumers the source of a particular product or service. In contrast, there is no legal protection for slogans that are simply catchy.
The discussion concluded with Emilie Kennedy’s fascinating presentation about the questions that street art poses. Does the art belong to the owner of the property or to the artist? British artist Banksy’s famous mural, “Slave Labour,” was physically removed from a building in London and put up for sale in Miami for half a million dollars. The artwork was withdrawn from sale in Miami, but later sold at an auction in London for $1.1 million. The aforementioned question becomes even more perplexing when it is learned that Banksy never received payment for his artwork.
Miami-Dade FAWL thanks Poseidon Greek Restaurant and Outdoor Lounge for serving their outstanding cuisine and for their hospitality, the speakers for taking the time to prepare their excellent presentations, and the members of the Miami-Dade FAWL Young Lawyers Committee for making the event a success.