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1 1 (January 10, 2005)

handle is hein.crs/crsaiov0001 and id is 1 raw text is: Order Code RS21882 Updated January 10, 2005 CRS Report for Congress Received through the CRS Web Collaborative R&D and the Cooperative Research and Technology Enhancement (CREATE) Act Wendy H. Schacht Specialist in Science and Technology Resources, Science, and Industry Division Summary The Cooperative Research and Technology Enhancement (CREATE) Act, P.L. 108-453, was signed into law on December 10, 2004. Reflecting congressional interest in encouraging cooperative research and development among universities, industry, and government, this legislation addresses issues of patent ownership under collaborative ventures. The act amends 35 U.S.C. section 103 to permit the patenting of inventions made through joint research among multiple partners if certain conditions are met. The change is in response to a 1997 decision of the Federal Court of Appeals in OddzOn Products, Inc., v Just Toys, Inc. which stated that absent an assignment of rights to a single entity prior to the start of a research endeavor, the sharing of information among members of a research team could render any resulting invention unpatentable because it does not meet the nonobvious requirements of the law. (To be nonobvious an invention must not have been readily within the ordinary skills of a competent artisan at the time the invention was made.) This Court decision was seen by some observers to be an impediment to joint public-private research endeavors and contrary to the intent of congressional policy facilitating such activities. This report will be updated as events warrant. Congress has had a long-standing interest in cooperative research and development (R&D) and its connection to technological advance. It is now widely accepted that technological advancement accounts for up to one-half of the Nation's economic growth over time. Joint ventures are an attempt to facilitate technological development within the industrial community. Academia, industry, and government are often seen as playing complementary roles in bringing new products, processes, and services to the marketplace. While opponents argue that collaborative activities stifle competition, proponents assert that they are designed to accommodate the strengths and responsibilities of these sectors. Cooperative projects are intended to utilize and integrate what the participants do best and direct these efforts to the goal of generating new technologies. Proponents note that they allow for shared costs, shared risks, shared facilities, and shared expertise. Congressional Research Service **o The Library of Congress

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