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TITLE V: Enforcement

"African Honey Badger-Level Aggressiveness"

SEC. 501. Civil Penalties

(a) FAILURE TO ATTRIBUTE:

Violation: Failure to credit originators in any public material

Penalty: $100,000 per violation (each instance = separate violation)

Example: Company website fails to credit 5 innovations = $500,000 fine

(b) BIOPIRACY:

Violation: Accessing traditional knowledge without prior informed consent, patenting traditional knowledge, or commercializing without benefit-sharing

Penalty:

  • First Offense: $10 million + disgorgement of all profits
  • Second Offense: $50 million + dissolution (corporate death penalty)

(c) ERASURE:

Violation: Deliberately erasing or minimizing contributions of BIPOC, women, queer, or Global South innovators

Penalty: $5 million per instance + mandatory public correction + educational programs funded by violator

(d) FAILURE TO COMPLY WITH BENEFIT-SHARING:

Violation: Company fails to pay agreed royalties or breaches benefit-sharing agreement

Penalty:

  • Triple damages (3× the owed amount)
  • Immediate termination of all federal support
  • 10-year ban on federal contracts/grants
  • Asset seizure to satisfy debts

(e) FRIVOLOUS PATENTS:

Violation: Attempting to patent traditional knowledge after this Act's passage

Penalty: $25 million + permanent ban from patenting + criminal referral (see Sec. 502)

SEC. 502. Criminal Penalties

(a) BIOPIRACY AS FELONY:

Knowing and Willful Biopiracy (after this Act's passage) = federal crime

Penalties:

  • Individuals: Up to 10 years imprisonment + $1 million fine
  • Corporate Officers: Personal liability (cannot hide behind corporate veil)
  • Corporations: Dissolution (revocation of corporate charter)

(b) OBSTRUCTION:

Violation: Destroying evidence, lying to the Innovation Justice Council, and intimidating the originators

Penalties: Up to 5 years imprisonment + $500,000 fine

(c) REPEAT OFFENDERS:

Second Conviction for Biopiracy: 20 years imprisonment, permanent ban from any innovation-related business

SEC. 503. Corporate Accountability

(a) CORPORATE DEATH PENALTY:

Corporations May Be Dissolved For:

  1. Two or more biopiracy convictions
  2. Willful erasure of innovators with malicious intent
  3. Systematic violation of this Act

The Process:

  1. Innovation Justice Council recommends dissolution to the Attorney General
  2. DOJ files suit in federal court
  3. Court may order:
    • Revocation of corporate charter
    • Asset liquidation (proceeds to Innovation Reparations Fund)
    • Permanent ban on officers from forming new corporations

(b) PIERCING THE CORPORATE VEIL:

Personal Liability for:

  • CEOs
  • Board members
  • General counsels
  • Compliance officers

Who knowingly approved biopiracy or erasure

Cannot hide behind "it was a corporate decision"—individuals go to prison

(c) DISGORGEMENT OF ILL-GOTTEN GAINS:

Courts Shall Order:

  • Return of ALL profits from stolen innovations (not just damages)
  • Treble damages for willful violations (3× profits)
  • Punitive damages if cultural/spiritual harm

Example: Pharmaceutical company made $10B from patented traditional medicine without consent

  • Disgorgement: $10B
  • Treble Damages: $30B total
  • Punitive Damages: +$10B for spiritual harm to the community
  • Total: $40B penalty

SEC. 504. Whistleblower Protections & Bounties

(a) PROTECTED DISCLOSURES:

Employees who report violations are protected from:

  • Termination
  • Demotion
  • Harassment
  • Retaliation of any kind

Retaliation = separate criminal offense: Up to 5 years imprisonment for executives who retaliate

(b) BOUNTIES:

Whistleblowers Receive:

  • 15-30% of penalties collected up to $5M (based on significance of information)
  • Minimum $100,000 even if penalties are less
  • Legal fees paid by government

Example: Employee reports biopiracy, company fined $50M → whistleblower receives $7.5M-15M

(c) ANONYMOUS REPORTING:

Innovation Justice Council operates hotline: 1-800-JUSTICE-NOW

Whistleblowers may remain anonymous (Council protects identity even under subpoena)

SEC. 505. Private Right of Action

(a) STANDING:

Who May Sue:

  • Originators of innovations (individuals, communities, and nations)
  • Descendants of erased inventors
  • Indigenous nations
  • Global South countries
  • Civil rights organizations (on behalf of marginalized communities)
  • Any person harmed by intellectual imperialism

(b) VENUE:

Suits may be filed in:

  • Federal district court (any district where defendant operates)
  • International Court of Justice (if plaintiff is foreign nation)
  • Tribal courts (if plaintiff is Indigenous nation and defendant did business on tribal land)

(c) REMEDIES:

Courts May Order:

  1. Injunctions (stop using innovation immediately)
  2. Disgorgement of profits
  3. Compensatory damages (actual harm)
  4. Punitive damages (up to 10× compensatory)
  5. Attorney's fees (paid by defendant)
  6. Public apology and correction
  7. Funding for educational programs about originators
  8. Technology transfer to plaintiffs
  9. Any other equitable relief

(d) NO CAPS ON DAMAGES:

Unlike Tort Reform, there are NO limits on damages for intellectual imperialism (harm is incalculable)

(e) BURDEN OF PROOF:

Once the Plaintiff Shows:

  1. They are originator of innovation
  2. Defendant used innovation
  3. Defendant failed to credit/compensate

Burden Shifts to the Defendant to Prove:

  • They had proper consent
  • They provided fair attribution
  • They offered benefit-sharing

If defendant cannot prove = automatic liability

SEC. 506. Enforcement Agencies

(a) INNOVATION JUSTICE COUNCIL (primary enforcer):

Powers:

  • Investigate violations (subpoena power, search warrants)
  • Levy civil penalties
  • Refer criminal cases to DOJ
  • Negotiate settlements
  • Monitor compliance

Funding: $500M/year (robust budget = serious enforcement)

Staffing: 2,000 employees

  • 500 investigators
  • 300 lawyers
  • 200 compliance monitors
  • 500 researchers/analysts
  • 500 community liaisons (work with Indigenous/Global South communities)

(b) DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE:

Special Division: Intellectual Imperialism Prosecution Unit (IIPU)

Dedicated to:

  • Criminal prosecutions under this Act
  • Asset forfeiture
  • International cooperation (extradite biopirates hiding abroad)

Funding: $200M/year

Staffing: 500 federal prosecutors + FBI agents

(c) FEDERAL TRADE COMMISSION:

Consumer Protection: Ensure companies truthfully credit innovations in advertising

Penalties for False Attribution: $1M per false claim + corrective advertising (company must run ads crediting actual originators)

(d) PATENT AND TRADEMARK OFFICE:

Compliance Division: Review patent applications for biopiracy

Reject Applications That:

  • Involve traditional knowledge without consent
  • Fail to credit prior innovators
  • Violate Sec. 301

Funding: $100M/year (hire Indigenous liaisons, Global South experts)

SEC. 507. International Enforcement

(a) TREATY NEGOTIATIONS:

President Shall Negotiate:

Binding International Treaty on innovation justice with provisions:

  1. Global registry of traditional knowledge
  2. Mandatory prior informed consent
  3. Benefit-sharing standards (5% minimum)
  4. Mutual enforcement (extradite biopirates)
  5. International court for disputes

(b) TRADE SANCTIONS:

US Shall Impose Tariffs on:

  • Countries that allow biopiracy
  • Companies that steal traditional knowledge

Example: Country refuses to revoke biopiracy patent → 50% tariff on all imports from that country until compliance

(c) EXTRATERRITORIAL JURISDICTION:

US Courts Have Jurisdiction over:

  • US citizens committing biopiracy anywhere in the world
  • Foreign companies doing business in the US

Cannot escape justice by operating offshore

SEC. 508. Transparency & Public Accountability

(a) PUBLIC DATABASE:

Innovation Justice Council shall maintain:

Online and Searchable Database of:

  1. All enforcement actions (complaints, investigations, and penalties)
  2. Benefit-sharing agreements (anonymized financial details public)
  3. Revoked patents (biopiracy cases)
  4. Credited innovations (who created what)

Updated monthly, free public access

(b) ANNUAL REPORT TO CONGRESS:

Council Submits Report, including:

  1. Number of investigations, prosecutions, penalties
  2. Amount of compensation paid to originators
  3. Industries with highest violation rates
  4. Recommendations for strengthening enforcement

Report must be PUBLIC (no classified sections)

(c) COMMUNITY OVERSIGHT:

Originators have access to:

  • All records related to their innovations
  • Compliance reports from companies using their innovations
  • Financial audits (ensure royalties paid correctly)

Council must respond to originator complaints within 30 days