Director of the Intellectual Property Program and Law School Professor Patricia Campbell continues her critical work on counterfeit microelectronics in the Department of Defense supply chain. As part of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine’s Committee on Global Microelectronics: Models for the Department of Defense in Semiconductor Public-Private Partnerships, Campbell, along with other academic and industry experts, published their report entitled “Strategies to Enable Assured Access to Semiconductors for the Department of Defense.”
The report underscores the critical need for the Department of Defense to secure reliable access to advanced semiconductors, given their importance in defense systems. It highlights the risks posed by global dependency on semiconductor production, particularly from countries like Taiwan and South Korea. The report recommends public-private partnerships, investment in emerging technologies, and reshoring production to the U.S. to mitigate these risks and ensure national security. It emphasizes a coordinated, long-term strategy to maintain access to cutting-edge microelectronics.
“It’s difficult to overstate the potential for disaster when discussing counterfeit microelectronics in the DoD’s supply chain. A compromised component could potentially disable a warship, allow hostile actors to track military hardware movement, and contribute to countless other failures that would diminish US military capacity.” Campbell continues, “It was an incredible honor to be asked to serve on this committee at the National Academies and to be included in the conversation about securing the supply chain.”
A copy of the committee’s report can be downloaded from the National Academies’ website at Global Microelectronics Models for the Department of Defense in Semiconductor Public-Private Partnerships | National Academies.
Campbell has carved a niche for herself as one of the nation’s preeminent legal scholars on counterfeit microelectronics. Her most recent work, Debugging the Trademark Laws: The Lanham Act and Counterfeit Microelectronics, was most published in the Texas Intellectual Property Law Journal. Her forthcoming work, Debugging the Trademark Laws II: Criminal Penalties for Trafficking in Counterfeit Microelectronics, should be published in 2025.