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What: A talk by Madhavi Sunder, author of “From Goods to the Good Life”

Where: The Avid Reader, 617 Second St., Davis

When: Aug. 31, 7:30 p.m.

Author and UC Davis professor Madhavi Sunder will discuss her new book, “From Goods To a Good Life,” at The Avid Reader, 617 Second St., in downtown Davis on Friday, Aug. 31, at 7:30 p.m.

In her  book, Sunder, a professor of law at UCD, calls for a richer understanding of intellectual property law and its effects on social and cultural life. Most discussions of intellectual property focus on law and economics — issues like copyrights, patents, and trade secrets and the role they play in the development of artistic works and innovative products like the iPad.

In “From Goods to a Good Life: Intellectual Property and Global Justice,” Sunder argues that intellectual property does more than incentivize the production of more goods. She says the law fundamentally affects the ability of citizens to live a good life.  Intellectual property law governs the abilities of human beings to make and share culture, and to profit from this enterprise in a global knowledge economy. She goes on to explore the deep connections between cultural production and human freedom. The book covers subjects ranging from fan fiction to YouTube videos, to the protection of traditional knowledge and India as the pharmacy to the developing world.

Sunder writes in the book’s introduction: “From Barbie to Harry Potter, the Beatles to Beyoncé, Hollywood to Bollywood, and Viagra to life-saving AIDS medications, intellectual property now dominates our culture and rules our economy and welfare. Our children grow up in a world of copyrighted characters surrounded by trademarked goods.

“With the advent of the World Trade Organization and its legal obligations, intellectual property also increasingly affects people across the globe, from Brazil to Bangladesh. Yet the full cultural and economic consequences of intellectual property policies are often hidden. We focus instead on the fruits of innovation — more iPods, more bestsellers, more blockbuster drugs — without concern for what is being produced, by whom, and for whose benefit. But make no mistake: intellectual property laws have profound effects on human capabilities.”

In 2006, Sunder was named a Carnegie Scholar. She has taught at the Yale Law School and the University of Chicago Law School. Her articles have appeared in the Yale Law Journal, the Stanford Law Review, the California Law Review, and Law and Contemporary Problems.

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