GlobalAutoIndustry.com’s latest Audio Interview “IP and Trademark Protection In The Global Marketplace” features Fred Rocafort. Mr. Rocafort is a former diplomat who joined Harris Bricken after more than a decade of international legal experience, primarily in China, Vietnam, and Thailand. His wide range of experience includes starting and operating his own business in Asia, working as an in-house counsel for a Hong Kong-based multinational, as well as many years as a State Department official, providing a client-centric perspective to his legal work. In addition, he is a regular contributor to the award-winning China Law Blog.
Audio Interview Guest
Mr. Fred Rocafort, Attorney
Harris Bricken
In the 22-minute Audio Interview, Mr. Rocafort discusses these questions:
• Why is IP and trademark protection important in the first place for businesses?
• From the perspective of an American or Western company, does doing business internationally change IP and trademark considerations?
• Few companies have an unlimited budget for IP and trademark protection – how should businesses prioritize IP and trademark protection strategies if they are expanding into several overseas markets at the same time?
• Has the COVID-19 pandemic had an impact on IP and trademark protection?
• What are some of the specific steps that companies can take to protect their IP and trademarks overseas?
About Fred Rocafort:
Attorney
Harris Bricken
Fred is a former diplomat who joined Harris Bricken after more than a decade of international legal experience, primarily in China, Vietnam, and Thailand. His wide range of experience includes starting and operating his own business in Asia, working as an in-house counsel for a Hong Kong-based multinational, as well as many years as a State Department official, providing a client-centric perspective to his legal work. Fred co-hosts Harris Bricken’s weekly Global Law and Business podcast, which covers legal and economic developments in locales around the world to decipher global trends in law and business with the help of international guests. In addition, Fred is a regular contributor to the award-winning China Law Blog and the award-winning Canna Law Blog.
Fred began his career overseas as a U.S. vice-consul in Guangzhou, China, adjudicating thousands of visa applications and advocating for fairer treatment of American companies and citizens in China and for stronger anti-counterfeiting enforcement. After entering the private sector, Fred worked at a Shanghai law firm as a foreign legal advisor and later joined one of the oldest American law firms in China. He also led the legal team at a Hong Kong-based brand protection consultancy, spending most of his time out in the field, protecting clients against counterfeiters and fraudsters from Binh Duong to Buenos Aires.
Fred is an ardent supporter of FC Barcelona—and would be even in the absence of Catalan forebears who immigrated to Puerto Rico in the mid-1800s. An avid explorer of Hong Kong’s countryside, he now spends much of his free time discovering the Pacific Northwest’s natural charms.