The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic and representative democracy consisting of fifty states, a federal district, and the capital, Washington, D.C., and several territories, including one incorporated and five unincorporated. The states that became part of the original United States were British colonies, declaring independence from the Kingdom of Great Britain on July 4, 1776. U.S. independence was recognized by Great Britain in the Treaty of Paris, signed on September 3, 1783, which ended the American Revolutionary War. Other states continued to join through westward expansion through annexation, war, and colonization.
The present United States Constitution was adopted on September 17, 1787, and ratified by a sufficient number of states on June 21, 1788.The U.S. Constitution and federal laws are “the supreme law of the land” (Article VI, paragraph 2). Therefore, when there is a conflict between federal and state law, federal law prevails. The Constitution divides the federal government into three powers, with checks and balances preventing any one power from gaining too much power:
Article I defines the legislative branch, which consists of a bicameral Congress-the Senate and the House of Representatives-with specific powers, the most important of which is the power to make laws. However, legislation can only be passed for certain limited purposes as defined by the Constitution. Most related to IP are Section 8, clause 8 (patent and copyright clause, “to promote science and useful crafts by securing for a specified period to authors and inventors the exclusive rights to their writings and discoveries”), and Section 8, clause 3 (trade regulation clause, “to regulate commerce with foreign nations, among individual states, and with Indian tribes”). Congress also has implied powers under Section 8, Clause 18 (necessity and appropriateness clause: “to make all such laws as shall be necessary and proper to carry into effect the foregoing powers, and all other powers conferred by this Constitution upon the Government of the United States or upon any department or officer thereof”).
Article II grants executive powers to the president, who is head of state, head of government, and commander-in-chief. The president appoints cabinet members and other high-ranking officials-with the approval of the Senate-to direct and enforce federal laws and policies. The director of the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) needs confirmation, as does the librarian of the Library of Congress. The Registrar of Copyrights does not need one. The President has the power to sign international treaties, but treaties also require Senate ratification. In addition to the USPTO, the International Trade Commission (ITC) is also part of the executive branch. Both the USPTO and the CMT can adjudicate certain IP disputes within their specific areas of expertise, even though both agencies are part of the executive branch, not the judiciary.
Article III establishes the judiciary as one Supreme Court and lower federal courts created by Congress. Federal courts have jurisdiction to hear cases arising under the U.S. Constitution, federal laws and regulations, and international treaties. Other cases may be heard in federal courts, depending on the parties to the case. Today there are 94 federal district courts, and their decisions may be appealed to one of 12 regional intermediate appellate courts. In addition, specialized trial courts are the U.S. Court of Federal Claims and the Federal Court of International Trade. The Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit is an intermediate appellate court with nationwide jurisdiction to hear appeals concerning patent laws and cases decided by the CMT, the Court of International Trade, and the Federal Claims Court.
Each state is a separate sovereign entity with its own constitution, legislative, executive, and judicial powers. Powers, which the U.S. Constitution does not delegate to the federal government and does not prohibit the states, are reserved to the people of the states. The states, in turn, have delegated some governance-related powers to local agencies, townships, counties, cities, and special districts. Thus, under U.S. federalism, citizens are subject to several levels of government: the federal, state, and local levels. Any U.S. citizen can be subject to several local levels of government, such as township and county.