Intellectual property expert talks about law and art

MANILA, Philippines — Lawyer Anthony Bengzon, founding partner of Bengzon Negre Untalan Intellectual Property Attorneys, recently shared the basics of Intellectual Property Rights (IPR) and how it affects the various creative industries in a talk entitled “Legally Speaking: On Art and Law.”

Professionals, curators, faculty, art students, and members of the media gathered at the De La Salle-College of Saint Benilde School of Design and Arts Cinema to enhance their knowledge on protecting their respective masterpieces while avoiding unintentional copyright infringement. 

A professor of Intellectual Property Law in the Far Eastern University- De La Salle University dual degrees on Juris Doctor and Master of Business Administration program, Bengzon started with a brief explanation that the expression of ideas should be safeguarded.

The valued IPR speaker then discussed the intricacies of copyright ownership and highlighted the copyrightable literary, artistic, and derivative works.

Bengzon elaborated on the essence of fair use, or the copying of copyrighted material for a limited and transformative purpose. He likewise showcased the possibility of copyright infringement on music sampling, remixes, and mash-up, and the dangers of art forgery.

In addition, he shared that aesthetical industrial design can be protected under Philippine laws. However, he clarified that “you cannot copyright functional articles.”

He ended the well-attended lecture by declaring that: “Intellectual property doesn’t have a wealth of guidance because it is usually settled out of court. You don’t necessarily get what you deserve, but you get what you negotiate. Everything is negotiable. Life is a negotiation.”