The Law Society and IMRO will host a free public lecture on copyright and copyright law tomorrow night, Tuesday 18 February, as part of a unique partnership designed to highlight the importance of intellectual property to Ireland’s economic, cultural and creative sectors.

“European Copyright Law from the printing press to the digital age: a journey of constant change” is the first-ever IMRO and Law Society Annual Copyright Lecture.

The six-pm lecture will trace the evolution of copyright and copyright law in Europe over the last six centuries and highlight how copyright has been forced to adapt to the digital age.

Delivering the lecture will be:

• Dr Mark Hyland, Law Society IMRO adjunct Professor of Intellectual Property
• Professor Alison Firth, Visiting Professor, Newcastle Law School, Newcastle University

The lecture will be chaired by the Chief Executive of IMRO, Victor Finn.

Disruptive technology 

The theme of disruptive technology will be prominent, and contemporary aspects of the topic will be examined in the context of the 2001 Information Society Directiveand the 2019 Directive on Copyright and Related Rights in the Digital Single Market.

The event will take place at the Lecture Theatre, Education Centre, Law Society, Blackhall Place, Dublin 7.

It is free to attend, but advance registration is required.

Last June, IMRO and the Law Society announced the appointment of Dr Mark Hyland as the inaugural adjunct Professor of Intellectual Property Law.

IMRO and the Law Society of Ireland partnered to create the role in response to the fast-changing digital landscape and the inevitable on-going effects on copyright law and practice. 

Resource

The professorship is a key resource to the Law Society in broadening the knowledge base of trainee and qualified solicitors in the expanding area of IP and copyright law.

The expectation is that a solid grounding in this field of law will entice a new generation of lawyers into the music and entertainment industries.

Dr Hyland is a lecturer in International Intellectual Property Law at Bangor University Law School, Wales.

Geo-location

His current research focuses on two main themes: website-blocking injunctions in an IP context and, how geo-location/geo-blocking technologies can be used to facilitate the territorial licensing of digital copyright works.

He is a qualified solicitor and contributes articles on EU IP/IT law developments to the Eurlegal section of the Law Society Gazette.  

About IMRO

IMRO administers the performing rights in copyright music on behalf of its members (songwriters, composers, and music publishers) and on behalf of members of the international overseas societies that are affiliated to it. IMRO´s core function is to collect and distribute royalties arising from the public performance of copyright works.