UK Intellectual Property Office Northern IP Network event

The Technology, Governance and Intellectual Property Law Group at the School of Law, University of Leeds, will host the UK Intellectual Property Office Northern IP Network event.

The UK Intellectual Property Office (UKIPO) Northern IP Network is a regional community that brings together academics, industry partners, and government to support innovation and intellectual property policy development across the North of England.

The network serves as a conduit between researchers and the UKIPO's Evidence-Based Policymaking Centre (EPC), helping to ensure that high-quality empirical research informs national IP policy and strategy.

Through workshops, collaborative projects, and knowledge exchange events, the network promotes rigorous evidence gathering and practical solutions to emerging intellectual property challenges. It also provides a platform for researchers to showcase work that can contribute to the EPC's priorities and strengthen the UK's evidence-based policymaking ecosystem.

Previous Northern IP Network meetings have been hosted by Newcastle University, the University of York, the University of Liverpool, and Durham University.

The 2026 Leeds event will continue this tradition by bringing together invited participants from academia, government and industry to discuss current developments and future directions in intellectual property research and policy.

The programme will feature research presentations on a range of contemporary topics, including intellectual property and geopolitical technology governance, copyright and digital replicas, Crown copyright and generative AI, trade mark law after Brexit, and recent developments in geographical indications and branding.

The event will also include PhD poster presentations and networking opportunities, as well as a presentation by the UKIPO on forthcoming research priorities

The event is coordinated and organised by Dr Igor Szpotakowski and Dr Andrea Zappalaglio, with the support of other members of the Technology, Governance and Intellectual Property Law Group, part of the School of Law’s Centre for Business Law and Practice. Any queries regarding the event should be directed to the organisers.

Programme

10.30 – 11.00     Welcome coffee and pastries

11.00 – 11.15     Official welcome  

Prof Louise Ellison (Head of the School of Law); Dr Sam Lewis (Director of Research and Innovation for Law); Prof Duncan Sheehan (Director of the Centre for Business Law and Practice, School of Law)

11.15 – 12.00     Keynote and discussion  

Prof Ben Farrand (Professor in Law and Emerging Technologies, Newcastle University), ‘Strategic asset or innovation hindrance? The perception of IP in the context of geopolitical technology governance’

12.00 – 13.00     Copyright and AI Session      

Rebecca Moosavian, ‘Copyright, Image Rights Digital Replicas’

Dr Igor Szpotakowski, ‘Crown Copyright and Generative AI’

13.00 – 14.30     Lunch and coffee — PhD poster presentations and networking

14.30 – 15.00     UKIPO session     Presentation of forthcoming UKIPO research priorities and report on completed activities

15.00 – 16.00     Branding Session

Dr César Ramírez-Montes, ‘Trade Mark Law after Brexit’

Dr Andrea Zappalaglio, ‘Oatly: preliminary thoughts on “The Name of Things”’

16.00 – 16.15     Closing remarks

16.30 – 18.00     Drinks and canapés — ‘The Terrace’, Leeds University Union