%0 Journal Article
%T Travels With My Plant: Monsanto v. Schmeiser revisited
%A Bruce Ziff
%J University of Ottawa Law and Technology Journal
%D 2005
%I 
%X : This comment explores the implications of the Supreme Court of Canada decision in Monsanto Inc. v. Schmeiser, in which the validity of a patent protecting genetically modified plant genes and cells was upheld. Drawing on basic principles of property law and empirical data on the nature of genetically modified foods, the author suggests that the decision may have unforeseen yet farreaching effects on the ownership of conventional crops that are exposed to genetically modified reproductive materials. Moreover, while the Supreme Court of Canada in Monsanto assumed that Parliament could intervene to alter the patent protection for genetically modified plant material, the author argues that the Court has severely overestimated the ability of the federal government to do so, given Canada¡¯s obligations under the North American Free Trade Agreement. = = = = R¨¦sum¨¦: Ce commentaire porte sur les r¨¦percussions de la d¨¦cision de la Cour supr¨ºme du Canada dans l¡¯affaire Monsanto Inc. c. Schmeiser qui confirme la validit¨¦ du brevet prot¨¦geant les g¨¨nes et les cellules de plantes g¨¦n¨¦tiquement modifi¨¦s. S¡¯inspirant des principes fondamentaux du droit des biens et des donn¨¦es empiriques sur la nature des aliments g¨¦n¨¦tiquement modifi¨¦s, l¡¯auteur sugg¨¨re que cet arr¨ºt pourrait avoir des cons¨¦quences impr¨¦vues, mais importantes, sur le droit de propri¨¦t¨¦ des r¨¦coltes conventionnelles qui sont expos¨¦es ¨¤ du mat¨¦riel de reproduction g¨¦n¨¦tiquement modifi¨¦. De plus, bien que la Cour supr¨ºme du Canada ait pr¨¦sum¨¦ dans l¡¯affaire Monsanto que le Parlement a la possibilit¨¦ d¡¯intervenir afin de modifier la protection des brevets sur le mat¨¦riel v¨¦g¨¦tal g¨¦n¨¦tiquement modifi¨¦, l¡¯auteur soutient que la Cour a grandement surestim¨¦ la capacit¨¦ du gouvernement f¨¦d¨¦ral d¡¯agir de la sorte, ¨¦tant donn¨¦e les obligations du Canada en vertu de l¡¯Accord de libre-¨¦change nord-am¨¦ricain.
%U http://www.uoltj.ca/articles/vol2.2/2005.2.2.uoltj.Ziff.493-509.pdf