The Council for Innovation Promotion (C4IP)

The Council for Innovation Promotion is a bipartisan coalition dedicated to promoting strong and effective intellectual property rights that drive innovation, boost economic competitiveness, and improve lives everywhere.

C4IP is chaired by two former directors of the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, Andrei Iancu and David Kappos, who served under Presidents Trump and Obama, respectively. The board further includes two retired judges from the Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit, former Chief Judge Paul Michel and Judge Kathleen O’Malley. It also features two distinguished public servants: Lamar Smith, former U.S. Representative for Texas’s 21st congressional district and Chairman of the House Judiciary Committee, and Gary Locke, former Governor of Washington, U.S. Secretary of Commerce, and U.S. Ambassador to China under President Obama.

Through its work, C4IP elevates the importance of strong domestic and international IP rights through a range of advocacy programs, initiatives, and campaigns; forges a coalition of pro-innovation stakeholders to serve as advocates within political, governmental, and non-governmental organizations; supports government leaders who understand that IP is inextricably connected to innovation, and advance policies that support a strong IP system; and provides an authoritative bipartisan resource hub for policymakers, the media, and the general public on IP-related policies and issues.