January 26, 2007

Supreme Court Ruling May Disrupt Licensing

By GOLDIE BLUMENSTYK

A U.S. Supreme Court decision handed down this month in a patent-law case could create some disruptive and expensive situations for the many universities that increasingly depend on licenses to commercialize their inventions, according to several experts.

In an 8-to-1 decision, the court held that a party has the right to challenge the validity of a patent in court, even if it has already agreed to license the patented invention and is paying royalties to the patent owner.

The

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