Biotechnological inventions : moral restraints and patent law / Alastair Hudson

includes index.

Biotechnology : outlining the moral debate
Development of a European moral regime
Development of patent law in the United States
Application of Article 53 European Patent Convention
Language of patent law and biotechnological inventions
Protection in the United States
Legal protection under the Biotechnology Directive 1998
Biotechnology Directive 1998 : plant variety perspective
Moral concerns and patent law : recent developments

"Advances in modern biotechnology have produced profound and far-reaching implications for the relationship between humans, animals and the environment. As a result, a debate has arisen surrounding the legal, moral and social problems connected with this technology. A central part of this debate focuses on the role of moral considerations in the patent system as a form of regulation. This book examines this role and asks why in the context of biotechnological inventions morality has become an important issue. The origin, policy and legislative history of patent law in both the United States and member countries of the European Union is examined, with particular reference to the provisions relating to morality."

eng.