In previous work with Mark Lemley I have discussed the critical role played by the courts in fitting patent law to the ongoing needs of innovation. Careful scrutiny of the recently enacted America Invents Act (AIA), which legislatively reforms American patent law, underscores the need for robust...

An indivisible good is an ideal type with interesting properties and strong implications about public policy. It is a good - such as a heart transplant or a treatment for AIDS - that must be consumed in a fixed amount or not at all. The community's demand curve for an indivisible good is a...

In a world of zero transaction costs, one should observe optimal invention and innovation. As long as a system of enforceable contracts were in place, firms with inventive capacity and firms requiring inventions would negotiate for the optimal production of new creations. With adequate...

The objectives of this study were: (a) to explore the possibilities of developing a harmonized, pro-public health regional (Caribbean) IP regulation and drug policy (to include generic drugs) framework; (b) to make recommendations on the promulgation/up-dating of IP legislation and regulation...

Patent law is under-theorized in the sense that the predominating incentive-based justifications cannot by themselves adequately explain empirical evidence on patenting gathered by research economists. This article provides an alternative justification for patent law based on private transaction...

We consider openness in private and socially optimal licenses under conditions where network effects and multiperiod innovation are both possible. For private firms, we model a variety of possible business models from completely closed to fully open, and find that opening a platform can increase...

The present paper examines the differences in growth performances of Asia and Latin America, in particular, the roles of trade and institutions in explaining the differential growth experiences of the two regions. In examining trade policy instruments as a plausible explanation of growth...

This essay makes two related contributions. First, it introduces the concept of “patent pull” to highlight an underexplored demand-side perspective on patents. Patents “pull” (private and public) investment to productive activities that would be less attractive in the absence of patents....

The U.S. patent system has a number of implications for federal, state, and local departments of transportation (DOTs) and other transportation agencies. For example, contractors who develop inventions with the use of federal funds are typically allowed to patent the inventions, but the federal...

In recent years, governments have allocated increasing capital to direct startup funding through Government-sponsored Venture Capital funds (GVC). In this paper, we study the role of GVCs in the venture capital market and their relationship with Private Venture Capitalists (PVC). Using European...