Patentes universitarias y nanotecnología
The University of Houston Law Center (UHLC) is the Law School of the University of Houston, a public institution in the state of Texas, and one of its twelve faculties. It is accredited by the American Bar Association and is a member of the Association of American Law Schools. Its current Dean is Richard Alderman, who personally invited me for my stay.
Growing at a Vertiginous Pace
This center is growing at a vertiginous pace, becoming one of the references in the field of Intellectual Property (IP) not only nationally but also globally. Its faculty is integrated by human resources from diverse universities and are key points in the development of this matter.
Scientific Interest of the Project
The purpose of the research stay is to complete all previous investigations in my doctoral thesis, obtaining a general and comparative vision of the subject matter, in addition to what I can obtain in my country of origin.
In particular, it studies university patents and the regime of inventions laboral in the field of the University as a mechanism for activating a more competitive market and in search of innovation and a market that cares about a group of interest such as society. A problem that arises in this regard is the distinction between basic research and applied or derivative research.
Some doctrines defend that this distinction is artificial. Others consider it necessary to make this distinction to determine what is susceptible to protection under our IP system.
If basic research were subject to patent protection, this would slow down the progress of future investigations as other researchers would not have access a priori to the theoretical knowledge or it would be costly. It could lead to researchers hoarding their developments to date, avoiding positive effects for innovation.
All this acquires greater relevance when entering into the university sphere, in which numerous results of the research will be protected by patent if they meet the necessary requirements. This is where a controversial nucleus resides to analyze, especially when these advances have to be transferred to society.
Transfer Mechanisms
For this purpose, it is necessary to carry out an in-depth analysis of these transfer mechanisms, namely: licensing systems, creation of companies, spin-offs, EBTs, always making this analysis from a legal point of view and resorting to other jurisdictions for a comparative study. In all this framework, numerous controversial legal issues arise that have not been fully developed in our society.