A Measured Approach to Patent Reform Legislation
Patent reform legislation is under serious consideration by the Senate and House of Representatives, a mere four years after the America Invents Act of 2011 (AIA) brought about a major overhaul of United States patent law. A primary goal of current legislative efforts is the reining in of “patent trolls” (also called “patent assertion entities”), ... A Measured Approach to Patent Reform Legislation
The Second Circuit Misapplies the Per Se Rule in U.S. v. Apple
In its June 30 decision in United States v. Apple Inc., a three-judge Second Circuit panel departed from sound antitrust reasoning in holding that Apple’s e-book distribution agreement with various publishers was illegal per se. Judge Dennis Jacobs’ thoughtful dissent, which substantially informs the following discussion of this case, is worth a close read. In ... The Second Circuit Misapplies the Per Se Rule in U.S. v. Apple
The OECD Provides Further Guidance on Assessing the Anticompetitive Impact of Laws and Regulations
The most welfare-inimical restrictions on competition stem from governmental action, and the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development’s newly promulgated “Competition Assessment Toolkit, Volume 3: Operational Manual” (“Toolkit 3,” approved by the OECD in late June 2015) provides useful additional guidance on how to evaluate and tackle such harmful market distortions. Toolkit 3 is a ... The OECD Provides Further Guidance on Assessing the Anticompetitive Impact of Laws and Regulations
One Step Forward: The Supremes Add Some Bite to Environmental Cost-Benefit Analysis
Today, in Michigan v. EPA, a five-Justice Supreme Court majority (Antonin Scalia, joined by Chief Justice John Roberts, and Justices Anthony Kennedy, Clarence Thomas, and Samuel Alito, with Thomas issuing a separate concurrence) held that the Clean Air Act requires the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to consider costs, including the cost of compliance, when deciding ... One Step Forward: The Supremes Add Some Bite to Environmental Cost-Benefit Analysis
Raisins, Takings, and the Regulatory State
Today, in Horne v. Department of Agriculture, the U.S. Supreme Court held that the Fifth Amendment requires that the Government pay just compensation when it takes personal property, just as when it takes real property, and that the Government cannot make raisin growers relinquish their property without just compensation as a condition of selling their ... Raisins, Takings, and the Regulatory State
Stare Decisis, Economic Efficiency, and Spider-Man
Today, in Kimble v. Marvel Entertainment, a case involving the technology underlying the Spider-Man Web-Blaster, the Supreme Court invoked stare decisis to uphold an old precedent based on bad economics. In so doing, the Court spun a tangled web of formalism that trapped economic common sense within it, forgetting that, as Spider-Man was warned in ... Stare Decisis, Economic Efficiency, and Spider-Man
More than New International Trade Deals are Needed to Liberalize International Trade and Promote Economic Freedom
During the recent debate over whether to grant the Obama Administration “trade promotion authority” (TPA or fast track) to enter into major international trade agreements (such as the Trans-Pacific Partnership, or TPP), little attention has been directed to the problem of remaining anticompetitive governmental regulatory obstacles to liberalized trade and free markets. Those remaining obstacles, ... More than New International Trade Deals are Needed to Liberalize International Trade and Promote Economic Freedom
Curbing Internet Copyright Infringement
In my article published today in The Daily Signal, I delve into the difficulties of curbing Internet-related copyright infringement. The key points are summarized below. U.S. industries that rely on copyright protection (such as motion pictures, music, television, visual arts, and software) are threatened by the unauthorized Internet downloading of copyrighted writings, designs, artwork, music ... Curbing Internet Copyright Infringement
Copyright and the Internet: Getting the Balance Right
Yesterday my essay on this topic was published as part of a Heritage Foundation Special Report on Saving Internet Freedom. The essay reviews threats to copyrighted works posed by the Internet and describes public and private essays to deal with Internet-related copyright infringement. The essay concludes as follows: “A variety of approaches—many of which are ... Copyright and the Internet: Getting the Balance Right
New Heritage Foundation Publication on Saving Internet Freedom
Yesterday the Heritage Foundation released a series of essays on “Saving Internet Freedom.” These analytical essays are an excellent reference work for interested members of the public who seek answers to those who claim the Internet requires new and intrusive government regulation. The introduction to the essays highlights the topics they cover and summarizes their ... New Heritage Foundation Publication on Saving Internet Freedom
The FTC’s Cardinal Health Settlement is Bad Antitrust Medicine and Highlights the Need for Additional Antitrust Guidance
On April 17, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) voted three-to-two to enter into a consent agreement In the Matter of Cardinal Health, Inc., requiring Cardinal Health to disgorge funds as part of the settlement in this monopolization case. As ably explained by dissenting Commissioners Josh Wright and Maureen Ohlhausen, the U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ... The FTC’s Cardinal Health Settlement is Bad Antitrust Medicine and Highlights the Need for Additional Antitrust Guidance
The FTC, not the FCC, Should Police Internet Abuses
The FCC’s proposed “Open Internet Order,” which would impose heavy-handed “common carrier” regulation of Internet service providers (the Order is being appealed in federal court and there are good arguments for striking it down) in order to promote “net neutrality,” is fundamentally misconceived. If upheld, it will slow innovation, impose substantial costs, and harm consumers ... The FTC, not the FCC, Should Police Internet Abuses
