There are many reports about the release this week of an ACTA summary document that was first made available on the USTR website. These articles suggest that this reflects new support for transparency from the Obama administration. While it may be true that the administration supports greater transparency, making that connection in this case is misleading. The document is a negotiated text between all the ACTA countries (this was made clear in the DFAIT consultation). Some countries (Canada among them) are supportive of greater transparency, others are not. It is not entirely clear where the U.S. stands. Moreover, it is not just the U.S. that made the document available – all ACTA partners are entitled to do so (the Canadian version is here). Finally, while it is not a bad document, there is still far more information available online from non-governmental sources. A commitment to transparency would mean making available actual documents including draft text and "non-papers" used as the basis for discussion.
The ACTA Document and Obama Transparency
April 9, 2009
Tags: acta / anti-counterfeiting trade agreement / copyright / Counterfeit / counterfeiting / obama / transparency
Share this post

Law Bytes
Episode 278: Ben Waldman on Gander Social and the Challenges of Building a Sovereign Social Network
byMichael Geist

August 10, 2026
Michael Geist
Search Results placeholder
Michael Geist on Substack
Recent Posts
The Lessons of 9/11 We Forgot After October 7th
Named to Canadian Lawyer’s Top 25 Most Influential Lawyers
Be Careful What You Wish For: Why Asking Google Maps to Defy the U.S. on Lake Ontario Would Undermine Canadian Digital Sovereignty
Big Money, Bigger Design Changes: What the Meta Settlement Means for Canada, Bill C-34, and the Age Verification and Privacy Risks That Remain
Unleashing the Trolls: Ontario Court Opens the Door to Liability for Influencers Who Weaponize Their Audiences
