Law Commons^™

A Patent Misperception, Elizabeth I. Winston

Scholarly Articles

Antitrust and intellectual property laws promote innovation and competition. As long as the costs of promotion do not exceed the benefit to society, then the laws act in harmony. Discord arises when patent holders use public and private ordering to restrain competition, restrict downstream trade, prevent the development of competing products and limit output by competitors. Using the Patent Act and the misperception of antitrust immunity to create a parallel and under-regulated legal system allows a small number of patent holders to coordinate their behavior to maximize profits and minimize competition. The Patent Act provides no shield to prosecution for …

Clarifying The Doctrine Of Inequitable Conduct, Elizabeth I. Winston

Scholarly Articles

Addressing squarely the issue of the multiple standards of materiality in inequitable conduct litigation, Therasense v. Becton Dickinson raises many difficult issues that could be clarified through the lens of the analogous concept of fraud on the Trademark Office. The standards for finding fraud on the Trademark Office lack the ambiguity found in the doctrine of inequitable conduct, despite the parallel penalties of unenforceability and requirements of proof of materiality and intent. Informed by the many decisions of Judge Michel, this essay concludes that the standards for finding fraud before the Trademark Office, as set forth in In re Bose, …

The God Paradox, Joshua A.T. Fairfield

Scholarly Articles

Not available.

The End Of The (Virtual) World, Joshua A.T. Fairfield

Scholarly Articles

Virtual worlds have been the next big thing for some time now. In 2008, more than 100 public virtual worlds received venture capital funding - a significant increase over previous years. Yet virtual worlds have been going bankrupt faster than ever, including several high-profile firms and worlds. Every technology goes through a shakedown phase, and for virtual worlds the current recession has served as a catalyst for a downturn that, although not unexpected, is nevertheless startling in both numbers and rapidity.

This article examines the intimate relationship between how a virtual world begins life and how it ends. The amount …

The Flawed Nature Of The False Marking Statute, Elizabeth I. Winston

Scholarly Articles

In 2005, the United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit rendered a decision on an “issue of first impression” interpreting a one hundred sixty-three year old provision of the United States Code - the “false marking” statute embodied in 35 U.S.C. § 292. It is false marking to mark as patented an unpatented article if done with the intent to deceive the public and, as such, is a fineable offense. The false marking statute remains one of only a handful of qui tam actions left intact from a rich history of varied incentives provided by the government for …

Introduction: Intellectual Property In The Age Of The Internet, Susanna Frederick Fischer

Scholarly Articles

No abstract provided.

Catholic Social Teaching, The Rule Of Law, And Copyright Protection, Susanna Frederick Fischer

Scholarly Articles

The rule of law is currently under grave threat in cyberspace. Even as copyright laws have been strengthened in many ways in response to new digital technologies, these laws are widely disrespected and cannot be effectively enforced against all those who willfully flout them. The legislative response has been to strengthen copyright laws more and more, including expanding copyrightable subject matter, giving copyright owners new rights, and lengthening the copyright term. One example is the Copyright Term Extension Act of 1998. This amendment to federal copyright law retroactively extended the duration of copyright protection by twenty years. The judicial response …

What If Seeds Were Not Patentable?, Elizabeth I. Winston

Scholarly Articles

In 2001, the United States Supreme Court held that seeds were patentable subject matter - a decision, I assert, of much discussion and little impact. Protection of agricultural intellectual property through private ordering, used both to expand the protection available through public ordering and to circumvent the restrictions public ordering places on owners of intellectual property, has provided the incentives necessary to promote investment and innovation in seeds. It has not been the patentability of seeds that has led to agricultural advances, but rather the profitability of licensing agricultural intellectual property. What if seeds were not patentable? So what if …

The “Rootkit Debacle”: The Latest Chapter In The Story Of The Recording Industry And The War On Music Piracy, Megan M. La Belle

Scholarly Articles

In the age of digital music, illicit copying or burning of CDs is a rampant problem that undermines the rights of copyright holders, record labels, and artists alike. The recording industry has attempted to address this problem by manufacturing and releasing CDs with various types of digital rights management (DRM) technologies. Most recently, Sony BMG introduced CDs containing DRM software that was intended, among other things, to limit the number of copies of the CD the user could make, and prevent the user from sharing the content of the CD on peer-to-peer networks. However, the manner in which this software …

Why Sell What You Can License?, Contracting Around Statutory Protection Of Intellectual Property, Elizabeth I. Winston

Scholarly Articles

Historically, the transfer of goods has been through sale, a model regulated by public legislation. Increasingly, however, the transfer of goods is occurring through licensing, a model regulated by private legislation. Privately-legislated licenses - for such chattels as musical and written works and agricultural goods - are being used to circumvent publicly-legislated restrictions on intellectual property. Private legislation should not circumvent public legislation, and intellectual property owners should not be allowed to circumvent the statutory scheme for protection of intellectual property. Licenses that augment publicly-legislated protection of intellectual property support the traditional role of contracts and should be enforced. Licenses …

Patent And Antitrust, Happy Together?, Daniel F. Attridge, Gregory F. Corbett

Scholarly Articles

No abstract provided.

Ucita Enacted In Virginia, Sarah K. Wiant

Scholarly Articles

No abstract provided.

Dun & Bradstreet, Hepps, And Liberty Lobby: New Analytic Primer On The Future Course Of Defamation, Rodney A. Smolla

Scholarly Articles

Not available.