Michael Schlesinger

International Intellectual Property Alliance

1818 N Street, NW, 8th Floor

Washington, DC 20036

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MICHAEL SCHLESINGER represents the International Intellectual Property Allianceâ (IIPAÒ), a private sector coalition of seven U.S. trade associations which represent roughly 3,200 companies producing and distributing materials protected by copyright laws throughout the world, including: business applications software; entertainment software on all platforms; theatrical films, television programs, home videos, and digital representations of audiovisual works; music, records, CDs, and audiocassettes; and textbooks, tradebooks, reference and professional publications and journals (in both electronic and print media). Michael monitors copyright law and enforcement developments worldwide, focusing on activities and issues in Greater China, Southeast and South Asia, the Middle East and Africa.

In addition to his IIPA representation, Michael is Of Counsel to the law firm of Mitchell Silberberg & Knupp LLP, specializing in international copyright law and trademark law and trade-related aspects of intellectual property rights protection. Michael works extensively with U.S. government officials and foreign government counterparts on negotiating and implementing global IP agreements and emerging IP standards, and engaging in capacity building in the area of IP and trade. Michael has spoken on copyright issues around the world. Media appearances include Bloomberg TV, PBS’ Nightly Business Report, Voice of America, and WorldNet. Since 2002, Michael has traveled to high schools in the Washington region to give presentations on “copyright awareness.” Michael was a Fellow of the Sorensen Institute for Political Leadership (at the University of Virginia) in 2002. Michael is Professorial Lecturer of Law at George Washington University Law School teaching International Copyright Law, and Lecturer in Law at the Munich Intellectual Property Law Center (MIPLC) of the Max Planck Institute.

Michael’s publications include: Through the Lens of TRIPS Enforcement Text and WIPO “Internet” Treaties: The Possible Shift to a Creative Economy in Southeast Asia, in Christoph Antons Ed., Copyright Law in Southeast Asia, Kluwer Law Books (2011); Legal Issues in Peer to Peer File Sharing Focusing on the Making Available Right, in Alain Strowel Ed., Peer to Peer File Sharing and Secondary Liability in Copyright Law, Edward Elgar (2009); Overview of Global Implementation of TPMs: Emerging Global Standards, Fordham University School of Law Fourteenth Annual Conference on International Intellectual Property Law & Policy (2006); WIPO Treaties Implementation Globally: The Key Issues, Fordham Twelfth Annual Conference, International Intellectual Property Law and Policy (2004) (with Dr. Mihály Ficsor); Exceptions and Limitations on the Prohibition of Circumvention of Technological Protection Measures, ALAI 2001 Congress (2001); Copyright and the Information Revolution in the Arab World, Georgetown University, Center for Contemporary Arab Studies (2001); Crimes of Copyright Infringement Explained: the Prospect for Strong Judicial Enforcement Against Copyright Infringement, in Mark Cohen Ed., Chinese Intellectual Property Law and Practice, Kluwer Law Books (1999); Intellectual Property Law in China, Parts 1 and 2, East Asian Executive Reports (1997).

Michael is a graduate of Columbia University School of Law (J.D.) and Oberlin College (A.B.). He is a member of the Virginia and District of Columbia Bars. Michael has been admitted to the courts of the Commonwealth of Virginia, the District of Columbia, the 4th Circuit Court of Appeals, the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals, and the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia. Michael has several charitable causes, including the Friends of Fort Dupont Ice Arena, Skate for Life, the Muscular Dystrophy Association, the Washington Ballet and the Washington Chorus. Michael’s hobbies include singing with the Washington Chorus and composing music.