FLAG Group to Tackle Digital Software Issues

January 11, 2010

New to FAST, the FLAG Digital Group has been created to de-mystify the issues around digital law for software. The aim is for the working group to investigate and report on digital matters and for the law firm members to be available for consultation.

FLAG is the Federation Against Software Theft’s (FAST) Legal Advisory Group, established shortly after FAST was founded in 1984, and consists of lawyers from many of the UK’s leading Intellectual Property practices. FLAG meets several times a year to receive presentations on pertinent topics and review legal developments affecting the software industry.

FAST General Counsel, Julian Heathcote Hobbins comments: “The specialist legal knowledge that FLAG has built up on digital issues and copyright will be shared with the end user community to help manage these complex issues, bringing benefits to the software industry and businesses in the future.”

FLAG determines whether action is required to alert Government and other agencies to its position and makes submissions to Government on various proposed laws. For example in 2007 FLAG made a substantial contribution to the Gowers Review on Intellectual Property and has been engaged in the resulting workflow ever since.

“The Digital Group’s first task is to consider the new Digital Economy Bill and specifically to decide whether there are material issues affecting the software industry with certain clauses,” Julian concluded.

Law firms participating in the new group include; Beachcroft, DMH Stallard, Lovells, Palmer Biggs Legal and Wedlake Bell.