Law Commons^™

Intellectual Property And Biofuels: The Energy Crisis, Food Security, And Climate Change, Matthew Rimmer, Griffith Hack

Matthew Rimmer

In light of larger public policy debates over intellectual property and climate change, this article considers patent practice, law, and policy in respect of biofuels. This debate has significant implications for public policy discussions in respect of energy independence, food security, and climate change. The first section of the paper provides a network analysis of patents in respect of biofuels across the three generations. It provides empirical research in respect of patent subject matter, ownership, and strategy in respect of biofuels. The second section provides a case study of significant patent litigation over biofuels. There is an examination of the …

Bowman V. Monsanto: A Bellwether For The Emerging Issue Of Patentable Self-Replicating Technologies And Inadvertent Infringement, Christopher M. Holman

Christopher M Holman

The inherent tendency of patented seeds to self-replicate has led to fears that farmers might face liability for inadvertent patent infringement. To address the perceived problem, some have proposed severely limiting the availability of effective patent protection for self-replicating technologies, for example by denying patent rights to “second generation” self-replicating products, or even by broadly declaring such technologies ineligible for patent protection. The fact is, lawsuits against inadvertently infringing farmers remain of largely hypothetical concern. However, changes in the market could soon render such lawsuits a reality. In addressing the resulting policy concerns, the courts and/or Congress have at their …

A Fishery, A Sanctuary, A Sink, And A Disaster: The Often Hapless Management Of California's Salton Sea, William M. Mclaren

Will McLaren

Over a century ago, a series of questionable management decisions and water-diversion engineering mistakes in Southern California produced an “unnatural” waterbody called the Salton Sea. Since then, the Sea has served as a recreational destination with fluctuating popularity, a sanctuary for migratory birds, a sink for agricultural runoff and urban wastewater, and one of the most productive tilapia and corvina fisheries in the United States. However, the Sea’s resources and associated uses have steadily deteriorated since its formation.

The contrast between the ethics that drove resource management decisions at the time of the Salton Sea’s formation to those employed in …

The Death Of The Duty To Apply: Limitations To Cafo Oversight Following Waterkeeper & National Pork Producers, William M. Mclaren

Will McLaren

Should regulators have an affirmative burden to show industrial livestock facilities are polluting before imposing permit requirements, or should facility owners have a duty to apply for permits? This article analyzes that question in the context of water quality permitting and the concentrated livestock industry, with an emphasis on permitting regimes under the Clean Water Act (CWA).

Concentrated animal feeding operations (CAFOs) have, in the past decade, received a decisive answer to the above inquiry. In Waterkeeper Alliance v. EPA and National Pork Producers v. EPA, two federal appellate courts determined that CAFOs have no duty to apply for a …

Demanding Supply: The Bioenergy Farm Lease’S Critical Role In Biomass Supply Chain Optimization, A. Bryan Endres, Elise C. Scott

A. Bryan Endres

As the bioenergy industry in the U.S. expands to meet increased demands for transportation fuel under the Renewable Fuel Standard and electrical power under state Renewable Portfolio Standards, farmers will seek the ability to grow dedicated, high-yielding energy crops of a perennial nature on leased property. Given the large amount of farmland in the U.S. that is leased, such contributions will represent a significant, though currently not well understood, portion of the biofuel industry supply chain. Through the use of contracts as governance schemes, the parties to a bioenergy farm lease can navigate three key areas of such a lease: …

Industrial Hemp: Canada Exports, United States Imports, Courtney N. Moran Ll.M.

Courtney N. Moran LL.M.

Industrial hemp, a non-psychoactive variety of Cannabis sativa L., (C. sativa) is the greatest renewable resource available to mankind. Industrial hemp is an environmentally friendly crop that does not require herbicides or pesticides and can clean up toxins in soil. Manufacturers can produce hemp into over 25,000 products.

More than 30 industrialized nations, including Canada, cultivate industrial hemp for commercial purposes. Despite the fact that industrial hemp is a viable agricultural commodity, in the United States hemp is classified as marihuana, a Schedule I controlled substance, under the Controlled Substances Act (CSA). Therefore, it is illegal under U.S. federal law …

Frayed Seams In The "Patchwork Quilt" Of American Federalism: An Empirical Analysis Of Invasive Plant Species Regulation, A. Bryan Endres, James S.N. Mccubbins, Lauren D. Quinn, Jacob N. Barney

A. Bryan Endres

Increased demand for biomass feedstocks to meet renewable energy mandates will require development of newer, bigger and better plant resources. Ideal biomass traits–fast growth and ability to outcompete local vegetation, prolific seed production, adaptability to a variety of soil and climatic conditions, and resistance to pests and diseases–also typify invasive flora. Next-generation biofuel feedstocks may be more productive and profitable at the individual farm level, but also may pose a greater risk of becoming invasive, thereby damaging the broader ecosystem and the economy. Accordingly, the agronomist’s search for yield maximizing biofuel crops for deployment into novel agricultural production systems and …

Raising Cane: Sugar Sugarcane Ethanol’S Economic And Environmental Effects On The United States, Jonathan M. Specht

Jonathan M Specht

In the coming decades the United States will need to change its energy policy to face two enormous challenges: adjusting to peak oil (declining petroleum production output), and halting the advance of climate change. Liquid biofuels — made from renewable, biologically-based sources of energy, rather than finite and climate change-inducing fossil fuels — will be an important component of any strategy to deal with the twin challenges of peak oil and climate change. While the United States has encouraged the production of biofuels in recent decades, the domestic ethanol industry, which is almost entirely corn-based, has a number of major …

Raising Cane: Sugar Sugarcane Ethanol’S Economic And Environmental Effects On The United States, Jonathan M. Specht

Jonathan M Specht

In the coming decades the United States will need to change its energy policy to face two enormous challenges: adjusting to peak oil (declining petroleum production output), and halting the advance of climate change. Liquid biofuels — made from renewable, biologically-based sources of energy, rather than finite and climate change-inducing fossil fuels — will be an important component of any strategy to deal with the twin challenges of peak oil and climate change. While the United States has encouraged the production of biofuels in recent decades, the domestic ethanol industry, which is almost entirely corn-based, has a number of major …

Student Internship In Science And Technology-Based Microenterprises In Zamboanga Peninsula, Philippines, Frede G. Moreno, Teresita A. Narvaez, Julieta B. Tendero

Frede G Moreno

The “Student Internship Project in Science and Technology-based Microenterprises” is a curriculum enhancement intervention executed through “hands-on” internship across Agriculture, Forestry and Natural Resource (AFNR) courses in three State Universities and Colleges (SUCs) in Region IX, Philippines. With the goal of reversing the declining enrolment trend, its four components (Coconut Sugar, Seaweeds, Tissue Culture and Rubber Seedlings) operate on experiential and pragmatic approach to enhancing the competence and institutional employability of students through science and technology utilization, acquisition of entrepreneurial skills and microenterprise development focusing on Zamboanga Peninsula’s major dollar-earning export commodities. The immersion of 362 student-interns has developed their …

Et Tu Lisa Jackson? An Economic Case For Why The Epa’S Sweeping Environmental Regulatory Agenda Hurts Animal Welfare On Factory Farms, David E. Solan

David E Solan

Over the last several years, animal protection groups have increasingly partnered with environmentalists to ratchet up the environmental regulation of factory farms. This alliance has manifested itself in two primary ways: first, leading animal protection groups have supported the bold activism of Lisa Jackson, the Administrator of the EPA, in seeking to lasso factory farms into compliance with environmental laws; and second, these groups have engaged in a litigation strategy of suing factory farms under environmental statutes.

The Article aims to challenge the popular wisdom among the animal protection community that increased collaboration with the environmental movement confers mutual benefits. …

When Serious Prejudice Fails To Impose Serious Consequences: Agricultural Subsidies And The Efficacy Of The Wto's Article 6.3 Serious Prejudice Claims, Aram Sethian

Aram Sethian

The traditionally unique status of agriculture as an exception to an otherwise increasingly liberalized, international trade regime has become a key challenge in defining the future of the World Trade Organization (“WTO”). Domestic agricultural production in the United States has been protected since the New Deal era, and has seen rekindling during various farming crises spanning to the present day. Protectionism in the agricultural sector is often justified by factors that do not resonate with the general scheme of trade in manufactured goods. On political grounds, states desire self-sufficiency in order to avoid become a political subservient to trading partners …

What Happened To Veggie Libel: Why Plaintiffs Are Not Using Agricultural Product Disparagement Statutes, Sara Kohen

Sara Kohen

Agricultural product disparagement (“APD”) statutes create a cause of action based on negative statements made about agricultural products. When APD statutes were first enacted in the 1990s, legal scholars and the press criticized them as violating the First Amendment’s protection of speech and predicted that agricultural interests would use them to silence people who raised alarms about food safety. These concerns seemed well founded after beef producers sued Oprah Winfrey under the Texas APD statute for negative statements made about beef on her program. Despite these dire predictions, however, APD statutes have resulted in only two reported lawsuits. This article …

Reconsidering Federalism And The Farm: Toward Including Local, State, And Regional Voices In America’S Food Syste, Margaret Sova Mccabe

Margaret Sova McCabe

The American food system has pressing problems that affect us all. Our food system's structure contributes to public health problems including obesity, food safety, and environmental degradation. This relationship between the food system and pubic health necessitates understanding the federal government's role in the food system. Federalism contributes to alienating people from food production and consumption. This essay argues that to address public health problems successfully, we must question the federal government's pervasive role in the food system and institute greater state and local roles. The essay reviews the rise of federalism in agriculture. It then examines three recent developments …

Food Sovereignty Is A Gendered Issue, Margaret Ellinger-Locke

Margaret Ellinger-Locke

No abstract provided.

Emerging Law Addressing Climate Change And Water, Prof. Elizabeth Burleson

Prof. Elizabeth Burleson

The World Economic Forum recognizes that while restrictions on energy affect water systems and vice versa, energy and water policy are rarely coordinated. The International Panel on Climate Change predicts that wet places will become wetter and dry places will become dryer. Transboundary water, energy and climate coordination can occur through international consensus building.

Shifting The Paradigm: Broadening Our Understanding Of Agriculture And Its Impact On Climate Change, Annise Maguire

Annise Maguire

Scientists have determined that the Earth is warming at an unprecedented rate. Governments around the world are in near unanimous agreement about the existence of climate change and the threat it poses. Further, there is a growing consensus within the global scientific community that the primary cause of climate change is increased emissions of greenhouse gases (GHGs) related to human activities. At best, it appears that human actions are exacerbating the natural heating of the earth; at worst, humans are the primary cause of the rapid rise in temperatures.

Unfortunately, policies enacted to date have failed to take into account …

A Troubled Path To Private Property: Agricultural Land Law In Russia, Ira Kenneth Lindsay

Ira Kenneth Lindsay

When the Soviet Union collapsed many observers hoped that decollectivization would improve the infamously inefficient Soviet agricultural sector and raise collective farm workers out of poverty. The initial results of market reform in Russian agriculture were a severe disappointment in both respects. Under Putin, Russia has finally allowed agricultural land to be bought and sold. The effects of this latest reform have been less than was hoped by supporters or feared by opponents. Russia’s experience with land reform suggests that while private ownership of farmland may offer significant advantages, successful land reform requires much more than the creation of legal …

Table 1 Causes And Effects Of Child Labor In Agriculture, Irina Feofanova

Irina Feofanova

Appendices for COMBATING OF CHILD LABOR IN AGRICULTURE: CRITICISM OF EXISTING STANDARDS AND ROLE OF TRANSNATIONAL CORPORATIONS

Combating Of Child Labor In Agriculture: Criticism Of Existing Standards And Role Of Transnational Corporations, Irina Feofanova

Irina Feofanova

According to International Labour Organization (ILO) statistics, more than 70 percent of all child laborers work in agriculture. From tending cattle, harvesting crops, to handling machinery or holding flags to guide planes spraying pesticides, more than 132 million girls and boys, aged 5 to 14, help produce much of the food and drink people consume, as well as fibers and primary agricultural materials. ILO also notes that, of course, the numbers vary from country to country but it is estimated that at least 90 percent of economically active children in rural areas in developing countries are working in agriculture. However, …

The Legal Needs Of Farmers: An Analysis Of The Family Farm Legal Needs Survey, A. Bryan Endres, Stephanie B. Johnson, Donald L. Uchtmann, Anne H. Silvis

A. Bryan Endres

In post-modern agriculture's increasingly complex operating environment, the literature lacks a comprehensive analysis of the legal issues facing today's farm operators from the perspective of the farmer. Numerous scholars (included the authors) have analyzed various specific legal/policy issues and their impact on the agricultural community. This article, however, adopts a unique bottom-up approach in which the family farmers, rather than scholars or practitioners, identify their actual legal needs. Derived from the Family Farm Legal Needs Survey conducted by the authors with the support of the Illinois Bar Foundation, this article fills a critical gap in the literature and will enable …

Think Big And Ignore The Law: U.S. Corn And Ethanol Subsidies And Wto Law, Phoenix X. Cai

Phoenix X. Cai

Phoenix X.F. Cai

Think Big and Ignore the Law: U.S. Corn and Ethanol Subsidies and WTO Law

Abstract:

International trade law is currently confronting a substantial challenge arising from tensions over U.S. subsidies to its domestic agricultural producers. Because of three recent developments, nations with competing agricultural economies are increasingly likely to pursue litigation against the U.S. challenging those subsidies. First, Brazil’s success in its recent challenge to U.S. cotton subsidies in the Upland Cotton case will likely embolden these nations to undertake similar suits. Brazil based its claim on legal arguments that will apply equally to U.S. corn and …

Antidumping Duties In The Agriculture Sector: Trade Restricting Or Trade Deflecting?, Nisha Malhotra, Horatiu Rus, Shinan Kassam

Nisha Malhotra

In this paper we analyze whether U.S. Anti-Dumping (AD) duties in the agricultural sector are effective in restricting trade. More specifically, does imposition of an antidumping duty restrict imports of the named commodity or is there a diversion in the supply of imports from countries named in the petition to countries not named in the antidumping petition? We find that AD duties have had a significant impact on the imports of agricultural commodities from the countries named in the petition. However, our results also indicate that, unlike the manufacturing sector in the US, there was little trade diversion towards countries …

Reconciling Property Rights In Plants , Jeremy F. De Beer

Jeremy de Beer

This essay shows how to reconcile competing intellectual, common and "classic" property rights, using plants and agricultural biotechnology as an exemplar. As intellectual property (IP) has become philosophically fashionable, other important property rights have been neglected. This is evidenced in copyright law by debates over private copying and decryption technologies. It is apparent in the realm of biotechnology and human body samples. And it is epitomized in the Supreme Court of Canada's decision in Monsanto Canada Inc v Schmeiser concerning patented plant genes and farmers' seed saving rights.

Instrumental rather than natural rights arguments are usually invoked as support for …

The Administrative Hearing Officer And The National Appeals Division Of The United States Department Of Agriculture: A Brief History, A Contemporary Perspective, And Some Thoughts For The Future, Chris Mcneil

Christopher B. McNeil, J.D., Ph.D.

No abstract provided.