“But I Found It First!” Life Science Company Seeks SCOTUS Review Over Patent Eligibility of Natural Discoveries

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materniBy Miriam Swedlow

On March 21, 2016, Sequenom, Inc. asked the Supreme Court to review a decision from the Federal Circuit Court of Appeals that rendered invalid the company’s patent directed towards detecting paternally inherited cell-free fetal DNA (cffDNA) in a pregnant woman’s blood.

In 1996, two doctors discovered the presence of cffDNA in maternal plasma and serum. Once discovered, the doctors used established laboratory techniques to separate and amplify the genetic material to identify paternally inherited DNA and perform genetic diagnostic tests on it. Sequenom, Inc. commercialized the method as its MaterniT21 prenatal diagnostic test. Utilizing the test allows pregnant women to screen for many prenatal defects without having to undergo dangerous and invasive procedures into the uterus. Continue reading →

Don’t “Shoot!”: Recording Police Behavior Doesn’t Qualify for First Amendment Protections (At Least in the Eastern District of Pennsylvania)

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cldcBy Samuel Daheim

Our constitutional right to the freedom of expression under the First Amendment reaches a broad spectrum of wide-ranging activities. From flag burning to expenditures on campaigns for elected governmental office, the First Amendment protections of expression reach the lives of all U.S. citizens. However, on February 19th of this year, the federal district court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania held that First Amendment protections of expression do not cover observing and recording police activity in a public forum where such observations and recordings are not accompanied by criticism or challenge to police conduct. Continue reading →

Ethereum Gives Bitcoin A Run for Its Money

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ethereumBy Carlie Bacon

Are we on the verge of becoming a fully cashless society? Already, many people forego green for plastic and IOUs for Venmo. Amazon outright rejects cash at its bookstores. Companies have capitalized on the transition from tangible to virtual by offering cryptocurrency—encrypted peer-to-peer transactions.

Ethereum, a relatively new virtual currency company, has recently seen major growth. Its value increased 1,000 percent in the last quarter while Bitcoin transactions have slowed. Ethereum’s applications are powered by Ether, a single unit of payment. Like Bitcoin, Ethereum capped its supply. You can think of the supply cap like a virtual gold standard. Specifically, Ether is capped at 18 million Ether per year. Ether has dramatically increased in value, from $1 to $12, totaling about $1 billion in Ether that currently exists. Bitcoin currently stands at about $6 billion. Continue reading →

What Can a Foul-Mouthed Twitter Troll and a Board Game Playing Robot Tell Us About Artificial Intelligence’s Ramifications for the Legal System?

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AIBy Jeff Bess

Rapid technological development in the digital age has disrupted countless industries and fundamentally reshaped many aspects of modern life. Many of these technologies also present legal challenges; ranging from Constitutional privacy concerns stemming from government surveillance, to ongoing employment law disputes about companies’, like Uber, use of independent contractors. A perhaps even greater disruptor – to both the law and society in general – is found in the emerging field of Artificial Intelligence. There have been numerous scholarly inquiries into theoretical challenges of creating a moral and legal framework to govern Artificial Intelligence technologies, but recent accomplishments in the field can provide clues as to how the direction of the technology will inform necessary legal rules. Continue reading →

Erin Andrews’ Privacy Lawsuit and its Possible Effect on Hotel Policy

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erinandrewsBy Joe Davison

On March 7th, 2016, a jury awarded $55 million to Erin Andrews, a famous sports reporter and cohost of the popular show Dancing With The Stars, in an invasion of privacy lawsuit. In 2008, Michael David Barrett, a convicted stalker, secretly videotaped Andrews through the peephole in her hotel room door at a Marriot hotel in Nashville. Barrett had conned a hotel employee into confirming Andrews’ hotel reservation and asked to reserve the adjoining room. After filming Andrews while she was undressing, Barrett posted the video online. Continue reading →