Open Access. Powered by Scholars. Published by Universities.®

Law Commons

Open Access. Powered by Scholars. Published by Universities.®

2003

William & Mary Law School

Intellectual Property Law

Patent Law

Articles 1 - 2 of 2

Full-Text Articles in Law

Patent First, Ask Questions Later: Morality And Biotechnology In Patent Law, Margo A. Bagley Dec 2003

Patent First, Ask Questions Later: Morality And Biotechnology In Patent Law, Margo A. Bagley

William & Mary Law Review

This Article explores the U.S. "patent first, ask questions later" approach to determining what subject matter should receive patent protection. Under this approach, the US. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO or the Agency) issues patents on "anything under the sun made by man," and to the extent a patent's subject matter is sufficiently controversial, Congress acts retrospectively in assessing whether patents should issue on such inventions. This practice has important ramifications for morally controversial biotechnology patents specifically, and for American society generally. For many years ajudicially created "moral utility" doctrine served as a type of gatekeeper of patent subject matter …


Curbing The Federal Circuit's Enthusiasm: An Argument For A Rebuttable Presumption Against Application Of The Doctrine Of Equivalents To Disclosed But Unclaimed Subject Matter, Jeffrey M. Connor Dec 2003

Curbing The Federal Circuit's Enthusiasm: An Argument For A Rebuttable Presumption Against Application Of The Doctrine Of Equivalents To Disclosed But Unclaimed Subject Matter, Jeffrey M. Connor

William & Mary Law Review

No abstract provided.