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Harvesting The "Forbidden Fruit" Of Biotechnology Research: Genetic Engineering, International Law And The Patentability Of Higher Life Forms In Canada, Eugene C. Lim

Canadian Journal of Law and Technology

As the frontiers of science are constantly redefined by the emergence of new technology, patent law often has to struggle to keep pace with the changing conception of what constitutes a protectable “invention”. A key challenge facing patent law in the age of biotechnology lies in ascertaining the extent to which genetically engineered life forms should be protected. A major concern relates to whether such life forms should be excluded from patentability on grounds of ordre public, ethics and morality.

This article critically explores the extent to which patent law in Canada protects this “forbidden fruit” of biotechnological innovation, and …