Frequently Asked Questions About the IACC

How is the IACC staffed?
The IACC's Washington, D.C., office is small with a few IACC employees. The current IACC staff has IP enforcement experience to augment the experience of the members. The IACC professional staff experience includes government and private sector IP experience. The members benefit from this experience and the contacts made as a result. In addition, because of the "compactness" of the professional staff, the turnaround time for decision-making on policy issues is short.

How are you different from other associations, e.g., INTA?
The IACC focuses its efforts on IP enforcement issues. The IACC's enforcement emphasis is not restricted to trademarks. Because of IACC membership, the IACC looks to promote enforcement standards of the intellectual property owned by its members, whether copyrights, trademarks or patents. The IACC provides enforcement policy support to its members by focusing on the enforcement provisions of international agreements. It also provides members with training and education opportunities with enforcement officials both U.S. and foreign. The common objective of the company representatives, associations and other members is to promote enforcement. Thus, with this narrower focus, the IACC does not actively get involved in issues related to rights acquisition, i.e., the prosecution of trademark and patent applications.

Because your membership seems to be the same as that of other associations, how can it be of any benefit?
It is true that the IACC membership overlaps with many other associations. The difference is that the contact people of the member firms or companies at the IACC are those responsible for IP enforcement. These people may be different from those who represent the same firm or company with other associations. Another benefit of IACC membership is the level of interaction between the IACC and its members regarding input and opportunities. The IACC constantly notifies members of activities that are available, both domestically and internationally. The IACC also has two conferences per year that promotes interaction between IP owner representatives and others involved in the enforcement process. In most cases, enforcement requires a close working relationship between companies, outside counsel and investigators. Because we focus on enforcement, the conference attracts more people who are primarily involved in enforcement and less involved in application filings, etc.

I am seeking in-house counterpart contacts. What does this association have to offer me?
The IACC makes information regarding in-house contacts available to all of its members. We facilitate contacts between our members so that in-house IP representatives can contact counterparts. The membership does include private law firms, investigative firms and other IP associations.

What is the IACC's geographic focus–domestic or international?
The IACC is active both domestically and internationally. The domestic agenda includes state and federal laws and an active training program for federal, state and local law enforcement. Internationally, we engage various U.S. Government agencies and participate in programs for foreign officials that are sponsored by the U.S. Government, United Nations and other regional and intergovernmental organizations. Since 1999, the IACC has conducted training or participated in programs on six continents.

What are some of the things the association is doing that directly benefit a company?
The IACC is currently working to bring companies within the same industry together for improved industry sector anti-counterfeiting strategies. For example, the IACC helped the auto industry bring 10 global manufacturers together to discuss common global counterfeiting problems. The IACC gives IP owners opportunities to identify specific "fixes" needed for regional and international IP agreements. The IACC also provides opportunities to its members to be involved in training programs in our domestic program and in programs of WIPO and U.S. Government agencies. In addition, members are encouraged to work with the IACC to identify priorities and develop programs.

What makes this association unique?
The IACC believes that its uniqueness is its focused attention to a narrow area of interest and thereby honing its specialized knowledge and ability to serve its members. The IACC strives to expand its contact base internationally on IP enforcement issues for the benefit of its members.