Document Type
Symposia Article
Abstract
In The Genome Defense, Jorge Contreras vividly describes the story of how gene patents were challenged in Association for Molecular Pathology v. Myriad Genetics and the U.S. Supreme Court’s reversal of the USPTO’s long-standing practice of allowing patents on human genes. This Article examines how pharmaceutical companies navigate intellectual property challenges in the wake of the Myriad decision and other landmark cases that have redrawn the boundaries of patent-eligible subject matter. Drawing on the Author’s 35 years of experience in life science transactions, the Article analyzes three key strategies that pharmaceutical companies employ: (1) adapting their business and licensing models to work within new legal constraints, (2) finding creative ways to structure deals that achieve similar objectives through alternative means, and (3) developing approaches to mitigate unavoidable risks. Through examination of specific examples—including early biotechnology licensing deals, platform technology collaborations, and innovative licensing structures, the Article demonstrates how companies maintain deal certainty while operating within evolving legal frameworks. The Article concludes by arguing that maintaining freedom to operate for basic biological targets, while protecting truly innovative developments, best serves both scientific progress and patient interests.
DOI
10.37419/JPL.V11.I1.2
First Page
17
Last Page
66
Recommended Citation
James Farrington,
Color Inside the Lines: Achieving Pharmaceutical Deal Certainty when the Courts Keep Redrawing the IP Lines,
11
Tex. A&M J. Prop. L.
17
(2025).
Available at:
https://doi.org/10.37419/JPL.V11.I1.2