7/13. The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative (OUSTR) announced in a release that USTR Ron Kirk and European Union Trade Commissioner Catherine Ashton met in Washington DC on July 13.

The release states that "We exchanged ideas on potential steps to address the WTO dispute on Section 110(5) of the U.S. Copyright Act (the so-called "Irish music" dispute), which relates to music licensing. We directed our staffs to explore new options on this dispute in the coming weeks." (Parentheses in original.)

The EU brought, and won, a case against the U.S. before the World Trade Organization (WTO), but the U.S. has not yet brought the Copyright Act into compliance with the WTO Agreement on Trade Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPs). The EU continues complain about this. See for example, EU report [67 pages in PDF] titled "United States Barriers to Trade and Investment", released on April 21, 2008. See also, 17 U.S.C. § 110(5).

The just issued release also states that "We discussed the European Commission Trade Barrier Regulation Report on online gambling and its implications for the WTO rights and obligations of the parties concerned."

Various nations have complained to the WTO about U.S. protection of certain domestic online gambling. See also, EU report [94 pages in PDF] titled "Report to the Trade Barriers Regulation Committee", dated June 10, 2009, and story titled "EC Report Finds that US Internet Gambling Laws Are a Barrier to Trade" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 1,955, June 15, 2009.

6/30. European Union Trade Commissioner Catherine Ashton gave a speech in London, United Kingdom, in which she advocated resistance to protectionism, and completion of a Doha round agreement.

Ashton (at right) said that there is "a real risk that trade as a motor of economic recovery will be stalled by forces of protectionism. The difficult international economic environment puts real pressure on governments to move to shield their economies. This manifests itself as talk of raising tariffs and non-tariff barriers, of unfairly subsidising exports, of introducing local content requirements in stimulus packages."

HR 1 [LOC | WW], the huge spending bill enacted in the U.S. in February, which is touted by its proponents as a stimulus package, contains a local content requirement. See also, story titled "Spending Bill Includes Smoot Hawley Provision" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 1,899, February 13, 2009.

"Retreating to the safety of domestic markets is, after all, what tipped recession into depression in the 1930s", said Ashton.

She also discussed the Doha round. "The crisis has strengthened the need to complete the round, as the gains are estimated to be worth around 150 billion USD per year to the global economy. This would be a welcome boost for all of us, and we should conclude a balanced Doha deal as soon as we can."

7/10. The Offices of the Inspector General for the Department of Defense, Department of Justice (DOJ), Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), National Security Agency (NSA), Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI) released an unclassified version of a joint report [PDF] regarding NSA warrantless wiretaps.

The report details the history of the program, and especially disputes within the Bush administration about its legality. However, the report does not reach a conclusion as to its legality.

The report also addresses the value of the wiretap program. It quotes some officials who stated that it was useful and of value. The report states that General Hayden, former head of the NSA, found that it "was extremely valuable in protecting the United States from an al-Qa'ida terrorist attack". In contrast, the report also states that the DOJ/OIG found that "it generally played a limited role in the FBI's overall counterterrorism efforts".

This report was mandated by HR 6304 [LOC | WW], the "Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act Amendments Act of 2008", in the 110th Congress.

This report states that "In the weeks following the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, the President authorized the National Security Agency (NSA) to conduct a classified program to detect and prevent further attacks in the United States. As part of the NSA's classified program, several different intelligence activities were authorized in Presidential Authorizations, and the details of these activities changed over time. The program was reauthorized by the President approximately every 45 days, with certain modifications."

This included "the interception of the content of communications into and out of the United States where there was a reasonable basis to conclude that one party to the communication was a member of al-Qa'ida or related terrorist organizations."

It adds the President Bush acknowledged the existence of this program "in December 2005 following a series of articles published in The New York Times".

On December 16, 2005, the New York Times published a story by James Risen and Lichtblau titled "Bush Lets U.S. Spy on Callers Without Courts". See also, story titled "Bush, Gonzales & Hayden Discuss Presidential Intercepts and PATRIOT Act" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 1,276, December 20, 2005.

Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-VT), the Chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee (SJC), stated in a release that "I voted against the final version of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Amendments Act of 2008 because adequate safeguards had been excluded from the bill. Those flaws needlessly risked the freedom that all Americans should have from unchecked government powers. However, I worked to include a provision to ensure that this review was included to provide some measure of accountability for the warrantless surveillance of Americans. Unfortunately, the Bush-Cheney administration hid those actions from Congress and the American people until we learned about the program in a 2005 New York Times article. The conclusions of this review should help shed more light on these rule-of-law issues that the previous administration avoided for so long. While much of this report is classified, I look forward to carefully reviewing its findings."

Rep. John Conyers (D-MI), Chairman of the House Judiciary Committee (HJC), stated in a release that this report "documents what many of us in Congress concluded long ago: President Bush’s warrantless surveillance program was illegal from the beginning, and of questionable value. It clearly violated the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA), which regulates domestic surveillance for intelligence purposes, and was based on legal analysis that was ‘factually flawed. President Bush personally approved of this program which may have been impeachable conduct."

7/13. Austin Schlick was named General Counsel of the Federal Communications Commission (FCC). See, FCC release.

Schlick was Chief of the Civil Division of the Office of the Maryland Attorney General.

Before that he worked briefly at the FCC. He joined the FCC in February of 2004. He was Deputy General Counsel responsible for litigation, and when John Rogovin left the FCC, acting General Counsel. See, FCC release [PDF].

Before that, he worked in the Department of Justice's (DOJ) Office of the Solicitor General. Before that, he was a partner in the Washington DC communications law firm of Kellogg Huber Hansen Todd & Evans. He also previously worked for the law firm of Klein Farr Smith & Taranto.

Schlick also clerked for former Chief Justice Sandra O'Connor.

And before that, he clerked for former Judge Abner Mikva of the U.S. Court of Appeals (DCCir). Before his appointment to the Court of Appeals, Mikva was a Democratic Representative, representing a district on the north side of Chicago, and before that, a district on the south side of Chicago.

Federal Election Commission (FEC) records disclose that Schlick, like FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski and Mikva, gave money to the Obama campaign.

7/13. Steven VanRoekel was named Managing Director of the Federal Communications Commission (FCC). See, FCC release. He worked for Microsoft for 15 years. Federal Election Commission (FEC) records disclose that he gave money to the Obama campaign.

7/14. President Obama nominated Dennis Burke to be the U.S. Attorney for the District of Arizona for the term of four years. See, White House press office release.

7/14. President Obama nominated Steven Dettelbach to be the U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Ohio for the term of four years. See, White House press office release.

7/14. President Obama nominated Brendan Johnson to be the U.S. Attorney for the District of South Dakota for the term of four years. See, White House press office release.

7/14. President Obama nominated Karen Loeffler to be the U.S. Attorney for the District of Alaska for the term of four years. See, White House press office release.

7/14. President Obama nominated Florence Nakakuni to be the U.S. Attorney for the District of Hawaii for the term of four years. See, White House press office release.

7/14. President Obama nominated Carter Stewart to be the U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Ohio for the term of four years. See, White House press office release.

7/14. Harvard University's Berkman Center for Internet & Society announced in a release that it "will conduct an independent expert review of existing literature and studies about broadband deployment and usage throughout the world. This project will help inform the FCC’s efforts in developing the National Broadband Plan." FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski stated in a FCC release that this "will help lay the foundation for enlightened, data-driven decisionmaking".

7/14. The  Copyright Office (CO) published a notice in the Federal Register that announces, describes, recites, and sets the comment deadline for, its proposed rules requiring that applications for registration paid for by deposit account debits be submitted electronically using the electronic Copyright Office registration system. The CO also requests comments as to whether deposit accounts offer sufficient efficiencies to continue offering this service. The deadline to submit comments to the CO is August 28, 2009. See, notice in the Federal Register, July 14, 2009, Vol. 74, No. 133, at Pages 33930-33932.

7/14. The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative (OUSTR) published a notice in the Federal Register regarding Taiwan and the World Trade Organization (WTO) Agreement on Government Procurement (GPA). See, Federal Register, July 14, 2009, Vol. 74, No. 133, at Pages 34071-34072.

7/14. The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) announced in a release that it has formed "a task force to conduct a 60-day review of the Homeland Security Advisory System (HSAS). The mission of the task force is to assess the effectiveness of the system in informing the public about terrorist threats and communicating protective measures within government and throughout the private sector." The HSAS includes the red orange yellow blue green graphic.

7/13. The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) published a notice in the Federal Register regarding its two Trademark Examination Guides regarding deceptiveness refusals for non-geographic and geographic marks. The USPTO requests comments in this notice, but sets no comment deadline. See, Federal Register, July 13, 2009, Vol. 74, No. 132, at Pages 33416-33417.

7/13. The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) published a notice in the Federal Register that announces and sets the beginning dates for applications for new digital only LPTV and TV translator stations, for major changes to existing analog and digital LPTV and TV translator facilities in those areas, and, in the case of incumbent analog stations, for digital companion channels on August 25, 2009 in rural areas and January 25, 2010 nationwide. Applications will begin to be accepted August 25, 2009, subject to a geographic restriction, and without geographic restriction on January 25, 2010. See, Federal Register, July 13, 2009, Vol. 74, No. 132, at Page 33441.

7/13. The Government Accountability Office (GAO) released a report [PDF] titled "Assessing the Reliability of Computer-Processed Data".

7/10. The U.S. Court of Appeals (DCCir) issued its opinion [PDF] in Verizon v. CWA, reversing the District Court's vacating of an arbitration award in a labor dispute involving pay and duties of Verizon's voice mail group employees. This case is Verizon Washington D.C., Inc. v. Communications Workers of America, AFL-CIO, U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia, App. Ct. No. 08-7092, an appeal from the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, D.C. No. 1:07-cv-01460-PLF.

7/10. The Practicing Law Institute (PLI) announced that it now sells law books in digital format for delivery to Amazon's Kindle.

The House will meet at 10:00 AM for legislative business. See, Rep. Hoyer's schedule for week of July 13, and schedule for July 15.

8:30 - 11:30 AM. The Phoenix Center for Advanced Legal and Economic Policy Studies will host an event titled "Understanding Broadband Metrics: The Broadband Adoption Index". FCC Commissioner Robert McDowell will speak at 9:00 AM. See, agenda [PDF]. RSVP to 202-274-0235 or info at phoenix-center dot org Location: National Press Club, 13th floor, 529 14th St., NW.

9:00 AM - 5:00 PM. Day three of a three day event hosted by the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) titled "Workshop on the Protocol for Lightweight Authentication of Identity (PLAID)". See, notice in the Federal Register, June 19, 2009, Vol. 74, No. 117, at Pages 29183-29184. Location: Administration Building, NIST Gaithersburg campus, 100 Bureau Drive, Gaithersburg, MD.

10:00 AM. The Senate Commerce Committee (SCC) will hold a hearing titled "Contraband Cell Phones in Correctional Facilities: Public Safety Impact and the Potential Implications of Jamming Technologies". See, notice. Location: Room 253, Russell Building.

10:00 AM. The Senate Homeland Security and Government Affairs Committee (SHSGAC) will hold a hearing titled "Identification Security: Reevaluating the REAL ID Act". The witnesses will be Janet Napolitano (Secretary of Homeland Security), Jim Douglas (Governor of Vermont), Leroy Baca (Sheriff of LA County), Stewart Baker (Steptoe & Johnson), David Quam (National Governors Association), and Ari Schwartz (CDT). See also, S 1261 [LOC | WW], the "Providing for Additional Security in States' Identification Act of 2009" or "PASS ID Act", introduced on June 15, 2009. Location: Room 342, Rayburn Building.

1:00 - 5:00 PM. The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) will host an event titled "2009 Business Methods Partnership Meeting". See, notice. Location: USPTO, Madison Auditorium (South), Concourse Level, Madison Building, 600 Dulany Street, Alexandria, VA.

2:30 PM. The Senate Commerce Committee (SCC) will hold a hearing on the nominations of Mignon Clyburn and Meredith Baker to be Commissioners of the Federal Communications Commission (FCC). See, notice. Location: Room 253, Russell Building.

The House will meet at 10:00 AM for legislative business. See, Rep. Hoyer's schedule for week of July 13.

9:00 - 10:30 AM. The Information Technology and Innovation Foundation (ITIF) will host a panel discussion titled "The Role of Information Technology in Creating New Kinds of High Schools". The speakers will be Robert Atkinson (ITIF), Curtis Johnson, Tim MacDonald, and Alan Shusterman. See, notice. This event is free and open to the public. A light breakfast will be served. Location: ITIF, Suite 610, 1101 K St., NW.

12:00 NOON - 2:00 PM. 6:00 - 9:15 PM. The DC Bar Association will host an event titled "The ABCs of IP: A Primer on Patent, Copyright, and Trademark Law". The speakers will be Janet Fries (Drinker Biddle), Gary Krugman (Sughrue Mion), Steven Warner (Fitzpatrick Cella), and Mark Williamson (Fitzpatrick Cella). See, notice. The price to attend ranges from $25-$35. Location: DC Bar Conference Center, 1101 K St., NW.

6:00 - 9:15 PM. The DC Bar Association will host an event titled "Antitrust Investigations: Tactical and Ethical Issues". The speakers will be Ann O'Brien (Department of Justice), Ray Hartwell (Hunton & Williams), Kathryn Fenton (Jones Day), and Donald Klawiter (Mayer Brown). The price to attend ranges from $89 to $129. Most DC Bar events are not open to the public. See, notice. Location: DC Bar Conference Center, 1101 K St., NW.

6:00 - 8:00 PM. The Federal Communications Bar Association's (FCBA) Young Lawyers Committee and Wireless Committee will host an event titled "Happy Hour". For more information, contact Micah Caldwell at mcaldwell at fh-law dot com or Leslie Moylan at lesliemoylan at dwt dot com. Location: The Roof Terrace Restaurant & Bar, Kennedy Center, 2700 F St., NW.

The House may meet at 10:00 AM for legislative business. See, Rep. Hoyer's schedule for week of July 13.

10:00 AM - 1:00 PM. The Heritage Foundation will host two panel discussions titled "Scholars & Scribes Review the Rulings: The Supreme Court's 2008-2009 Term". The speakers on the first panel will be Michael Carvin (Jones Day), Miguel Estrada (Gibson Dunn), Neal Katyal (Office of the Solicitor General), and Todd Gaziano (Heritage). The speakers on the second panel will be Lyle Denniston (SCOTUS Blog), Quin Hillyer (Washington Times), Juan Williams (NPR), and Robert Alt (Heritage). See, notice. Location: Heritage, 214, Massachusetts Ave.,  NE.

Deadline to submit reply comments to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) in response to its public notice regarding technical specifications for FM digital audio broadcasting (DAB). This public notice is DA 09-1127 in MM Docket No. 99-325. See, notice in the Federal Register, June 12, 2009, Vol. 74, No. 112, at Pages 27985-27988.

Deadline to submit comments to the National Institute of Standards and Technology's (NIST) Computer Security Division (CSD) regarding its draft NIST IR 7502 [42 pages in PDF] titled "The Common Configuration Scoring System (CCSS): Metrics for Software Security Configuration Vulnerabilities".

Day one of a two day conference hosted by the American Intellectual Property Law Association (AIPLA) titled "2009 Patent Cooperation Treaty Seminar". See, notice. Location?

? 9:00 - 10:30 AM. The Information Technology and Innovation Foundation (ITIF) will host an event titled "Structuring an Energy Technology Revolution". The speaker will be William Bonvillian (MIT). This event is free and open to the public. A light breakfast will be served. Location: ITIF, Suite 610, 1101 K St., NW.

12:00 NOON - 2:00 PM. The Technology Policy Institute (TPI) will host a panel discussion titled "Reforming Universal Service". The speakers will be Robert Crandall (Brookings Institution), Howie Hodges (One Economy), Jonathan Nuechterlein (Wilmer Hale), F.J. Pollak (P/CEO, TracFone Wireless), Gregory Rosston (Stanford Institute for Economic Policy Research). This event is free. Lunch will be served. See, registration page. Location: Room B-340, Rayburn Building.

12:15 - 1:00 PM. The Department of Commerce (DOC), AAP, BSA, IFTA, IIPA, MPAA, NMPA, and RIAA will host an event to release a report titled "Copyright Industries in the U.S. Economy: The 2003-2007 Report". Registration required. Contact Molly Torsen at molly dot torsen at mail dot doc dot gov or 202-482-0849. Location: Auditorium, DOC, 1401 Constitution Ave., NW.

Deadline to submit initial comments to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) in response to its Further Notice of Proposed Rulemaking regarding reinstating an exemption for 4.9 GHz band applications from coordination via a certified frequency coordinator. This item is FCC 09-29 in WP Docket No. 07-100. See, notice in the Federal Register, May 21, 2009, Vol. 74, No. 97, at Pages 23816-23822.

9:00 AM - 5:00 PM. Day one of a three day closed meeting of the Department of Homeland Security's (DHS) Homeland Security Science and Technology Advisory Committee (HSSTAC). See, notice in the Federal Register, June 25, 2009, Vol. 74, No. 121, at Page 30301. Location: Strategic Analysis, Inc., Executive Conference Center, 3601 Wilson Blvd., Suite 600, Arlington, VA.

9:30 AM - 5:00 PM. The District of Columbia Bar Association will host an event titled "Eighth Annual Hot Topics in Patent Law Symposium". The speakers will include John Doll (acting head of the USPTO), Judge Paul Michel (U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit), Lynn Levin (USITC), and Judge Liam O'Grady (USDC/EDVa). Prices vary. Most DC Bar events are not open to the public. See, notice. Location: FDIC Virginia Square Seidman Center, 3501 Fairfax Drive, Arlington, VA.

10:00 AM. The House Ways and Means Committee's (HWMC) Subcommittee on Trade will hold a hearing titled "Trade Advisory Committee System". See, notice. Location: Room B-318, Rayburn Building.

10:30 AM - 12:00 NOON. The Heritage Foundation will host a panel discussion titled "The New Strategic and Economic Dialogue with China: Fresh Start or Waste of Time?". The speakers will be Steven Dunaway (Council on Foreign Relations), Edward Gresser (Democratic Leadership Council), Taiya Smith (Carnegie Endowment for International Peace), and Derek Scissors (Heritage). See, notice. Location: Heritage, 214 Massachusetts Ave., NE.

2:00 PM. The Senate Judiciary Committee's (SJC) Subcommittee on Immigration, Border Security and Citizenship will hold a hearing titled "Ensuring a Legal Workforce: What Changes Should be Made to Our Current Employment Verification System?". The SJC will webcast this event. See, notice. Location: Room 226, Dirksen Building.

Day two of a two day conference hosted by the American Intellectual Property Law Association (AIPLA) titled "2009 Patent Cooperation Treaty Seminar". See, notice. Location?

9:00 AM - 5:00 PM. Day two of a three day closed meeting of the Department of Homeland Security's (DHS) Homeland Security Science and Technology Advisory Committee (HSSTAC). See, notice in the Federal Register, June 25, 2009, Vol. 74, No. 121, at Page 30301. Location: Strategic Analysis, Inc., Executive Conference Center, 3601 Wilson Blvd., Suite 600, Arlington, VA.

10:00 AM. The Senate Judiciary Committee (SJC) will hold a hearing titled "Promoting Job Creation and Foreign Investment in the United States: An Assessment of the EB-5 Regional Center Program". The SJC will webcast this event. See, notice. Location: Room 226, Dirksen Building.

6:00 - 8:00 PM. The District of Columbia Bar Association will host an event titled "Speed Mentoring for Consumer Law and Antitrust Attorneys". The DC Bar states that this is "designed to mimic speed dating", and will be followed by "a wine and cheese reception". For more information, call 202-626-3463. See, notice. Location: DC Bar Conference Center, 1101 K St., NW.

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