Obama Appoints Scholar as New Copyright Czar

Congress created the new czar position last year as part of intellectual property reform legislation.

Espinel, who requires Senate confirmation, has a past in teaching and government. Most recently, she was a visiting scholar at the George Mason University School of Law, where she taught intellectual property and international trade. The White House said she was an intellectual property adviser to the staff of the Senate Judiciary Committee, Senate Finance Committee, House Judiciary Committee and House Ways and Means Committee. Espinel, in 2005, served as the nation’s top trade negotiator for intellectual property at the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative.

Obama, in a statement that included the appointments of Michael Polt, ambassador to Estonia; and Adele Logan Alexander, to become a member of the National Council on the Humanities, said “These three individuals possess the skill and expertise their respective roles demand. I am certain they will serve the American people well, and look forward to working with them.”

In October, President George W. Bush signed into law legislation creating the new czar, a position on par with the nation’s drug czar Congress created in 1982 to wage the War on Drugs.

“We believe she will be fair in her approach to intellectual property enforcement issues,” said Gigi Sohn, president of Public Knowledge, a left-leaning digital- rights advocacy group.

The “Enforcement of Intellectual Property Rights Act,” known as the Pro-IP Act, requires the new czar to “report directly to the president and Congress regarding domestic international intellectual property enforcement programs.”

Victoria Espinel

Victoria Espinel is a wine enthusiast. Victoria is also an international trade expert and has negotiated international trade rules to protect wine producers.

Victoria is a professor at the George Mason University School of Law, teaching international trade, international intellectual property law and trademarks. She previously held the position of Assistant United States Trade Representative for Intellectual Property and Innovation at the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative.

As the first person to hold this position, Victoria was the chief U.S. trade negotiator for intellectual property and innovation, leading negotiations at the WTO, in U.S. free trade agreements and in bilateral discussions worldwide on a wide variety of intellectual property and innovation issues.

Before joining USTR, Victoria was an attorney with the law firms of Covington & Burling in London and Sidley, Austin, Brown & Wood in New York.