Redefining “Life” : The Constitutional Implications of Patenting Immortality

Redefining “Life” : The Constitutional Implications of Patenting Immortality

Journal article

31 pages

0736-7694

This Note will first explore what an indefinite lifespan would look like, according to prominent researchers in the field. Part II of this Note will examine the current patent law system, with a focus on its role in the current medical climate as well as its susceptibility to abuses. Part III of this Note will discuss the evolution of United States patent law and, specifically, its constitutional origins. Additionally, Part III will examine the right to life granted to individuals in the Constitution under the Fifth and Fourteenth Amendments and provide a contextual analysis of the Framers’ value of life. This Note will argue that an indefinite lifespan is beyond what the Framers fathomed at the time of the Constitution’s formation, and, based on their high regard for an individual’s right to life, they did not intend for the Intellectual Property Clause to grant patent protection over the cure to ageing. As a result, Part IV of this Note will propose a new legal framework for courts to use when examining whether patent protection should be granted over cutting edge medical developments, such as the cure to ageing.

Published in : Cardozo Arts & Entertainment Law, vol. 37, no. 3 (2019)

[New York City, New York] : Yeshiva University Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law, 2019.

eng