Canada strikes down oncomouse patent

The Supreme Court of Canada ruled Thursday that Harvard University cannot obtain a Canadian patent on its transgenic oncomouse. The court ruled 5-4 that Canada's patent law prohibits the patenting of higher life forms. The decision resolves a long-standing dispute. Harvard applied for a Canadian patent on its mouse in 1985. The Federal Court Trial Division in 1998 upheld the Canadian Patent Office's prior decision to allowed patents on the oncogene and related processes, but not on the genetically modified animal. In August 2000 the Federal Court of Appeal overturned the lower court's ruling, and said the mouse could be patented - a ruling that was appealed to the Supreme Court by the Canadian government. ...