We test for evidence that the patent attorney has an extra-ordinary influence on the patent examiner using data on examiner citations of 93 608 patent applications to the USPTO. We find that examiners cite patents from the same patent attorney (as used for the focal application) at an abnormally...

Low-quality patents are of considerable concern to businesses operating in patent-dense markets. There are two pathways by which low-quality patents may be issued: the patent office may apply systematically a standard that is too lenient (low inventive step threshold); or the patent office may...

Scant discussion exists in the literature about the relative design merits of various R&D schemes and most authors treat program design as a black box. In this paper, we assess the design features of three major forms of R&D support: entitlement schemes, competitive schemes and industry R&D...

Patents may assist trade in technology either by protecting buyers against the expropriation of the idea by third parties (the appropriation effect) or by enabling sellers to more frankly disclose the idea during the negotiation phase (the disclosure effect). We test for the presence of both...

This innovative book sheds new light on the emerging confluence between labour and industrial economics: the view that labour as capital is the dominant factor of production. This factor is commonly embraced under the term intangible capital.

This paper reviews theoretical and empirical academic economic studies that discuss what is intangible and intellectual capital and why is it important for society. It begins by discussing issues such as the nature of this capital and how has it changed over time. Subsequently it reviews...

This paper tests whether there is empirical evidence that two distinct Beveridge curves for the skilled and unskilled aggregate markets. The results support the dualism hypothesis and specifically find that the skilled labour segment is more efficient at matching workers with jobs and/or has...

This paper presents the main findings from a study of six industrial capabilities in leading Victorian sectors. The capabilities included manufacturing, design, information and communications technology (ICT), biotechnology, environment technologies and business services. Eighty-eight companies...

This paper uses a unique survey of consumers to test several separate but inter-related hypotheses of household saving. Unit records from 17,585 Australian households are available, which enables the incorporation of a range of household characteristics that may be important factors for saving...