CONSTITUTIONAL RIGHTS FOUNDATION
Bill of Rights in Action
WINTER 2008 (Volume 23, No. 4)
Intellectual Property
This special expanded edition of Bill of Rights in Action looks at issues related to intellectual property, an area of law and ethics rapidly expanding due to the development of new technologies. The first article traces the history of copyright and patent laws in the United States. The second article explores the problem of digital piracy, which is plaguing the U.S. music, movie, and video-game industries. The third article examines issues about the patenting life, which have arisen in the wake of advances in biotechnology. The final article looks at a major intellectual property issue in schools: cheating.
U.S. History: The Origins of Patent and Copyright Law
Government/Economics: Digital Piracy
Government: Patenting Life
Current Issues: The Cheating Problem
Guest writers Lucy Eisenberg, Esq., and Damon Huss, Esq. contributed to this edition. Eisenberg wrote the articles on the history of intellectual property and the patenting of life. Huss penned the article on cheating. Longtime contributor Carlton Martz wrote the piece on digital piracy.
This project was supported by Grant No. 2006-LD-BX-K010 awarded by the Department of Justice's Bureau of Justice Assistance with support from the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. The Bureau of Justice Assistance is a component of the Office of Justice Programs, which also includes the Bureau of Justice Statistics, the National Institute of Justice, the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention, and the Office for Victims of Crime. The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office is an agency within the U.S. Department of Commerce. Points of view or opinions in this document are those of the author and do not represent the official position or policies of the United States Department of Justice or the Department of Commerce
© 2008, Constitutional Rights Foundation, 601 South Kinglsey Drive, Los Angeles, CA 90005 (213) 487-5590 Fax (213) 386-0459
Officers: Joseph A. Calabrese, President; Publications Committee: Marvin S. Sears, Chairperson; Katrina M. Dewey, Rachel L. Helyar, Marshall P. Horowitz, Walter R. Lancaster, Marcus M. McDaniel, Dian Ogilvie, Peter I. Ostroff, Thomas E Patterson, Lisa M. Rockwell, Patrick G. Rogan, Peggy Saferstein, Paul W.A. Severin, K. Eugene Shutler, Gail Midgal Title, Russell C. Swartz, Douglas A. Thompson, Lois D. Thompson, Carlton Varner. Staff: Todd Clark, Executive Director; Marshall L. Croddy, Director of Programs; Lucy Eisenberg, Damon Huss, and Carlton Martz, Writers; Bill Hayes, Editor; Andrew Costly, Senior Publications Manager; Gail Midgal Title,CRF Board Reviewer.
