SOAS Research Online

Abstract

Corporate interests have dictated globalised protection and enforcement of intellectual property rights (IPRs). Corporations have not only controlled IPRs as exclusive private properties, gotten IPRs strengthened as trade related in the Trade Related Intellectual Property Sections (TRIPS) of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT), but have also laid property-based human rights protection claims to IPRs. While IPRs control by businesses have largely enhanced shareholder value, they have also engendered corporate abuses, and with negative impacts on competing interests of other stakeholders of the corporations including the employees, contractors and consumers. This paper interrogates to what extent such stakeholders are (or can be) protected within intellectual property (IP) law and corporate law framework. It provides specific instances of corporate abuses of IPRs, highlighting attendant injuries to relevant stakeholder interests. Following the identification of a few remedies available within the IP law system, the paper not only examines current possible safeguards at corporate law but also proposes new and complementary roles corporate law may play towards protection of victim stakeholders from asocial control of IPRs using the corporate form.