An initial version of this guide was prepared by Professor Ryan Abbott (Professor of Law and Health Sciences at the University of Surrey School of Law and Adjunct Associate Professor of Medicine at the David Geffen School of Medicine at University of California, Los Angeles) with the assistance of Kasiet Kachaganova (WIPO) in 2018 and further revised by him in 2022.
The text was further updated, revised and finalized by Dr. Alina Trapova (Lecturer, Faculty of Laws, University College London) in 2024.
Structural and line editing was provided by Marianne Cassidy (Content Consultant) in 2025.
Draft manuscripts received valuable comments from the following WIPO colleagues:
Patent and Technology Law Division: Andras Jokuti (Director), Tomoko Miyamoto (former Head, Patent Law Section), and Nina Belbl (Legal Officer)
Building Respect for IP Division: Xavier Vermandele (Senior Legal Counsellor) and Thomas Dillon (former Legal Counsellor)
Copyright Law Division: Michele Woods (Director) and Rafael Ferraz Vazquez (Legal Officer)
Frontier Technologies Division: Ulrike Till (Director) and Ana Andrijevic (Fellow)
An early version of the draft was reviewed by the following external experts:
Professor Jacques de Werra (Professor of Intellectual Property Law, University of Geneva)
Professor Stavroula Karapapa (Professor of Intellectual Property and Information Law, School of Law, University of Essex)
The guide was edited and designed by WIPO's Digital Engagement Service, led by Charlotte Beauchamp (Head of Publications and Design).
The project was managed by Tamara Nanayakkara (Counsellor, IP for Business Division) under the supervision of Guy Pessach (Director, IP for Business Division).