Biotechnology is a recognized research area that has increasingly advanced into new technologies and modern practices raising several legal, ethical and regulatory issues. The revolutionary speed of biotech innovations has had a significant impact on the protection of the rights of the individual. Fundamental rights provide a framework within which the justification of limitations and restrictions to biotechnology innovations and research results have to be assessed. The legal regulation of scientific research and scientific investigations impact more and more directly on the freedom of research and therapies as well as on the broad diffusion of knowledge. Closely related is also the debated question of the technological manipulation of life and the boundary of scientific knowledge with regard to the topical question of genetic invention patents and their side effects on access to scientific information and health care opportunities. Drawing on expertise from different disciplines, the volume comprises invited papers and plenary presentations given at the conference entitled “Biotech Innovations & Fundamental Rights” that took place on Januray 20-21 2011 at the Department of Juridical Sciences of the University of Ferrara. Each contribution covers a different aspect of the legal and scientific issues involved in regulation of biotechnology. In particular the focus of attention has been given to genetic research, genetic data, freedom of scientific research in genetics and biotech patents.

. . . recommended to anyone interested in the thrilling subject of the relationship of IPRs and innovation. Ralf Uhrich, Journal of Intellectual Property This is an outstanding piece of scholarship. It will serve as a powerful stimulant for new research in the field and as a reliable guide for practitioners. Calestous Juma, Harvard University, US Intellectual property rights (IPRs), particularly patents, occupy a prominent position in innovation systems, but to what extent they support or hinder innovation is widely disputed. Through the lens of biotechnology, this book delves deeply into the main issues at the crossroads of innovation and IPRs to evaluate claims of the positive and negative impacts of IPRs on innovation. An international group of scholars from a range of disciplines economic geography, health law, business, philosophy, history, public health, management examine how IPRs actually operate in innovation systems, not just from the perspective of theory but grounded in their global, regional, national, current and historical contexts. In so doing, the contributors seek to uncover and move beyond deeply held assumptions about the role of IPRs in innovation systems. Scholars and students interested in innovation, science and technology policy, intellectual property rights and technology transfer will find this volume of great interest. The findings will also be of value to decision makers in science and technology policy and managers of intellectual property in biotechnology and venture capital firms.

The volume is devoted to the relevant problems in the legal sphere, created and generated by recent advances in science and technology. In particular, it investigates a series of cutting-edge contemporary and controversial case-studies where scientific and technological issues intersect with individual legal rights. The book addresses challenging topics at the intersection of communication technologies and biotech innovations such as freedom of expression, right to health, knowledge production, Internet content regulation, accessibility and freedom of scientific research.

This innovative book explores the complex interplay between intellectual property for biotechnological innovations and human rights. Examining the clash between the drive to incentivise innovations that can fulfil human needs and the desire to grant global access to healthcare technologies, it presents thoughtful solutions to the challenges of protecting the human rights of all parties impacted by biotechnological patents and other relevant IP rights.

This book addresses Synthetic Biology (SynBio), a new and promising biotechnology that has attracted much interest from both a scientific and a policy perspective. Yet, questions concerning the patentability of SynBio inventions have not been examined in detail so far; as a result, it remains unclear whether these inventions are patentable on the basis of current norms and case law. The book addresses this question, focusing especially on the subject matter’s eligibility and moral criteria. It provides an overview of the legislation and decisions applicable to SynBio patents and examines this new technology in view of the ongoing debate over the patentability of biotechnologies in general. The legal analysis is complemented by the practical examination of several patent applications submitted to the European and US patent offices (EPO and USPTO), and by an assessment of the patent issues that are likely to be raised by future SynBio developments.

In todayês technological world, biotechnology is one of the most innovative and highly invested-in industries for research, in the field of science. This book analyses the forms and limitations of patent protection recognition for biotechnological inve

Employing a social justice framework, this book examines the effects of innovation incentives and policies in agriculture. It addresses access to the objects of innovation, the direction of science and the type of innovations that are available, opportunities to participate in research and development, as well as effects on future generations. The book examines the potential value of preventive and reconciliatory measures, drawing on concepts from procedural and restorative justice. As such it offers a comprehensive analysis of the main social justice dimensions affected by agricultural innovation. It gives academics and policy analysts an extensive overview of the deep impact of innovation on society and the environment, and the expectations the general public has from the scientific community.

Exploring the main developments and challenges for the right to family life in the context of European integration, this book examines the right to family life in the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights and the interplay between family life, citizenship, and free movement; it analyzes the combined impact of the EU and the European Convention on Human Rights on the concept of the family protected by the law in light of recent case law. Considering the broadening understanding of what constitutes family, the challenges for the right to family life in the context of immigration, and the protection of families and social rights it provides a comprehensive overview of the current state of family life in the European Union.

In recent years the impact of human rights and fundamental rights on private law has risen in prominence and led to a whole series of detailed investigations. 'Constitutionalization of private law' is the flag under which most of the research on the increasing impact of national constitutional rights on national private legal orders is sailing. In the absence of a European Constitution, the constitutionalization of European private law suggests a process: constitutionalization instead of constituent power, demos, and the magic constitutional moment. The Charter of Fundamental Rights and the European Convention of Human Rights constitute the two pillars on which the transformation of European private law rests. This volume clearly demonstrates the change that has taken place, at the national and at the European level. Private law is no longer immune to the intrusion of fundamental and human rights. Whilst member states and the EU are driving the process by adopting ever more concrete and more comprehensive lists of human and fundamental rights, at the national, the European, and international level with overlapping contents, the true and key players in this development are the national and European courts. Contributions to this volume give this process a face and a direction, which is highlighted in the introduction by Hans-W. Micklitz.