Press release, USNewswire story here. Today the Justice Dept. delivered a draft of The Intellectual Property Protection Act of 2007 to Congress. In it is a current wishlist of new criminal provisions for IP violations, including:
- Increasing 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; - Toughening penalties for repeat copyright infringers;
- Adding property seizure provisions similar to those used in the “War on Drugs” TM, for IP infringers to forfeit property derived from or used in intellectual property offenses;
- Adding harsher restitution provisions for copyright and DMCA offenses;
- Making the exportation and of copyright-infringing goods is a crime.
Complete text of the draft language coming soon.
Filed under: Copyright, DMCA, Legislation, Trademark
