University of San Diego (USD) School of Law congratulates Professor Lisa P. Ramsey on the release of her new book, Trademarks and Free Speech: Conflicts and Resolutions, published by Cambridge University Press.
In the book, Ramsey examines how trademark law can conflict with the right to freedom of expression and proposes a framework for evaluating free speech challenges to trademark registration and enforcement laws. She also explains why granting trademark rights in informational terms, political messages, widely used phrases, decorative product features, and other language and designs with substantial pre-existing communicative value can harm free expression and fair competition. Professor Ramsey encourages governments to impose more limits on the acquisition and scope of trademark rights, and recommends that trademark statutes explicitly allow certain expressive, informational, and decorative fair uses of another’s mark in the United States, Europe, and other countries.
“This excellent book explores the troubled relationship between trademark protection and free expression,” said Dr. Jennifer Davis, a law faculty member of the Centre for Intellectual Property and Information Law at the University of Cambridge. “Lisa Ramsey successfully interweaves a description of the relevant trademark law with a critique of how it is framed and applied, while identifying the reforms needed to adequately protect free expression. It is an authoritative account deserving wide attention.”
Ramsey’s scholarship focuses on trademark law, and she teaches intellectual property and international intellectual property law classes. Since joining USD Law in 2004, she has received both the Thorsnes Prize for Outstanding Legal Scholarship (2020–2021) and the Class of 1975 Endowed Professorship (2017–2018) for her excellence in teaching and scholarship. Ramsey is a member of the American Intellectual Property Law Association, the International Association for the Advancement of Teaching and Research in Intellectual Property, and the International Trademark Association.
To celebrate the book’s launch, Ramsey hosted a panel discussion with Senior Ninth Circuit Judge Margaret McKeown and DLA Piper partner Melissa Reinckens, followed by a reception and book signing. View photos from the event.
