Harmonising Copyright Law and Dealing with Dissonance: A Framework for Convergence of US and EU law

'The book reads so easily you hardly notice the erudition that has gone into it. Whether the authors are right in thinking harmonisation would be easier than is supposed is an open question - one they make you think about seriously.'
- Rt Hon Sir Robin Jacob, University College London, UK

This insightful study explores the constitutional, institutional, and cultural barriers to harmonisation of the copyright laws of the United States and the European Union. It considers these matters in the real world transnational environment in which copyright law operates and suggests that the reality transcends the differences, offering a framework for meaningful harmonisation.

The authors examine in detail and offer a critique of the sporadic and historic attempts at one or another form of harmonisation, via treaty and otherwise, from the creation of a minimal standards regime to the proliferation of substantive treaties. They similarly examine the respective competencies of the US and the EU to adopt a transnational regime, and propose a workable framework consistent with these competencies.

Offering a critical analysis of treaties and other prior attempts at forms of harmonization, this book will have special appeal to governmental and nongovernmental individuals involved in the ongoing efforts of WIPO and the WTO, as well as copyright and intellectual property practitioners with internationally oriented practices.

Contents: 1. Harmony, Policy, and Power 2. Minimum Standards and International Codes 3. Why We Don't Play Well with Others: U.S. Constitutional Constraints on Harmonisation of Copyright Law 4. If There is a Will, There is a Way…. The Broad Legislative Competence of the European Union 5. A Framework for Harmonisation Index