The essay presents the argument that the U.S. experienced a shallow economic depression in 2007-9 reminiscent of pre-war economic contractions. The economic data are analyzed to show that the downturn was more severe than any previous post-war downturn. Though technically over, the severity of...

Analytical economic evidence shows that a strong patent system provides incentives for investing in technology and encourages competition that tends to promote progress in the long run.Critics of patents look to short run exclusive rights that suggest an “anticommons” that blocks...

The collective behavior of a group of technology industry oligopolists to fix input prices of patented technology so as to increase profits and constrain competition is analyzed in light of antitrust cases. The antitrust laws and the patent system are seen as complementary, with antitrust laws...

In 2006, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in eBay Inc. v. MercExchange LLC that courts may use a “four-factor test” to determine patentee eligibility for an injunction in patent infringement cases. Lower courts have applied eBay in a random way, generally disallowing an injunction for patentees...

The American patent system emanates from the intellectual property clause in Article I of the U.S. constitution. Over two centuries of Congressional Acts and court legal opinions have shown a pattern of supporting strong patent rights.In contrast to the view that supports strong patent rights,...

The U.S patent system has been under attack for about a decade. One of the main justifications for changing the patent system has centered on the issue of patent quality. According to patent critics, patents are bad or low quality, justifying major changes to the patent examination and review...

The article surveys theories of licensing royalty rates in patent damages cases. After first reviewing, analyzing and critiquing Georgia-Pacific factors of patent licensing, the article evaluates the entire market value rule in light of the Lucent decision. The article reviews and analyzes real...

In the past decade, economic growth, wage growth, business investment and productivity growth have declined dramatically. Economists have discovered that productivity growth alone explains the dramatic development of industrial economies. Yet, the causes of productivity growth are unclear, with...

For over a century, the U.S. patent system has held a presumption of patent validity, based largely on the belief in the quality of the U.S. Patent Office examination system. There are several appellate processes to assert patent invalidity, including the patent reexam process, the federal...