Bridging the Innovation Gap: Pro Bono Opportunities for Intellectual Property Attorneys

A few months ago, I posted a three-part series entitled The Real McCoy: Should Intellectual Property Rights be the New Civil Rights in America? In that article, I explained that, in the last thirty years or so, there has been a shift from a labor economy to a knowledge economy. Consequently, intangible assets (with intellectual property rights (IPR) being chief among them) have emerged as the most powerful asset class, overtaking more traditional capital assets such as real estate, plant and equipment.  I then went on to define and point out that there is an “Innovation Gap” – disparities between classes of people, caused by societal hindrances, which prevent them from securing the IP rights necessary to economically exploit the fruits of their creativity.  I then argued that given the existence of an innovation gap, and the fact that we are in an information age with another industrial revolution on the way, IPR should be the focus of a renewed civil rights movement.  After all, the world’s natural resources may be shrinking, but the opportunities for there to be new candidates for IPR ownership are ever expanding!

I ended my three-part article by recommending that members of the IP Bar should strive to volunteer more pro bono hours in order to help bridge the innovation gap.  Encouragingly, I received some emails from IPWatchdog.com readers asking, “how can I help?”  Well, after some research, here is a list of some organizations around the country seeking patent, trademark and copyright pro bono attorney volunteers.

Happy bridging!