3D printing is most certainly the next major disruption in distribution since Napster.  Yet unlike file-sharing, 3D printing takes the digital into the physical realm, giving it the potential to challenge nearly every imaginable industry on Earth.  With daily stories of printed spaceship parts and custom bikinis beside headlines like “3D printed organs for all”, can the legal community hope to shape a consumer 3D printed world or is it doomed react at every turn?

This panel examines the issues from three perspectives:  1) the current legal landscape and how it may impact consumer 3D printing, such as IP, product liability, food and drug, and controlled substance/items laws; 2) current efforts at making 3D printing a legitimate fixture in the consumer realm; and 3) minor and bold solutions to avoid a fractured legal framework for consumer 3D printing, ranging from IP and tort overhaul to mandatory licensing schemes.

Panel:

Kaiser Wahab, Attorney and Partner, Riveles Wahab LLP
Zachary Lichaa, Public Policy, 3D Hubs
Jeff Trexler, Attorney, Writer, and Professor

Sponsored by HP IDOL On Demand, DomainSkate, and Clio. Thank you to our host The Yard and the Internet Society New York Chapter for the video!