An Examination of Intellectual Property Law in the 21st Century

Intellectual Property Law in the 21st Century

by David Kirk

Authors Note

                        This paper was prepared for a Business Law class.

Abstract

        Over the course of history, laws have been formulated and enacted to protect the rights of individuals in many aspects of their lives, including ownership of actual property, and ownership of intellectual property such as inventions or discoveries.  In the latter case, the laws of intellectual property, such as patent law, copyright law, and trademark law, exist to allow free and fair competition among individuals or organizations in the pursuit of financial gain.  

        When the rights of an individual or organization are infringed upon, legal recourse exists to challenge the violation of said rights in a court of law, and if infringement is proven, then to recover compensatory damages and in many cases, injunctive relief.  In order for a plaintiff to sue on a patent infringement, they must hold the appropriate patent.  To win the case, they must prove that an infringement has taken place on their patent.

        A patentable item is, generally speaking, intellectual property, but it is also personal property.  Personal property can either be tangible (meaning a physical existence), or intangible (such as the ideas and discoveries protected under patent law and copyright law).  Real property applies to land and real estate, while personal property is something that is usually produced or purchased (Business Law, 15th Edition, 2013, p. 613-614).

        This examination of specific cases involving patent law and property rights law will demonstrate some of the legalities and controversies that are being presented with the application of these laws being applied to modern scientific discoveries.  It will also examine some of the ethical questions that are being raised by these lawsuits and the subsequent rulings of the courts.

Personal and Intellectual Property Law in the 21st Century

Patent Law: An Overview

        The basis of the American patent system is found in Article 1, Section 8 of the U.S. Constitution, which empowers Congress to “promote the progress of science and useful arts” by securing (for limited times) the exclusive rights of inventors to their discoveries (U.S. Constitution, 1787).  The first patent statute was enacted by Congress in 1790, and amended in 1793.  This amendment, written by Thomas Jefferson, defined what was patentable.  Basically, any “new and useful art, machine, manufacture, or composition of matter” was deemed to be patentable.  In 1952, the 18th century word “art” was replaced by the modern equivalent of “process” during a congressional overhaul of patent law (National Research Council, 2006).