When the President’s nominee for U.S. Trade Representative, Katherine Tai, appeared before the Senate Finance Committee, no goal was more central to the hearing than the universal bipartisan view that she is being entrusted with responsibility to combat the theft of intellectual property rights (IPR). Senators expressed their view that technological innovation flourishes in the United States like nowhere else because of the lifeblood of strong IPR protection. China looms large as the biggest bad actor failing to respect U.S. intellectual property.
An early decision regarding trade enforcement will be on her desk when she arrives at the USTR building across the street from the White House. If the U.S. does not take this chance to enforce its own IPR laws against unfair imports that injure a U.S. industry, it risks handicapping its negotiating position with China.
Tai’s issue will be whether to recommend to the president that he concur with a determination by the International Trade Commission in favor of complainant LG Chem, Ltd. of the Republic of Korea who accused SK Innovation Co., Ltd. of the Republic of Korea of violating Section 337 of the Tariff Act of 1930 by producing, selling and importing into the United States certain lithium ion batteries, battery cells, and components, that were manufactured using trade secrets stolen from LG. The ITC found substantial injury to LG’s EV battery industry concentrated in Michigan and Ohio.
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