Principles of Biological Safety in Intellectual Property Law

Abstract

The impact of many modern biotechnologies on health and the environment has not yet been sufficiently studied. In recent years, we have witnessed their intensive development and active application in all new areas of public life, which leads to the need to take into account the principles of biosafety in the legal regulation of not only traditional areas of sanitary and epidemiological supervision and control, but also in other areas, including civil law relations. It is necessary to form a unified legal framework at the intersectoral level in order to take into account the principles of biological safety where legal regulation of intellectual property protection should take a separate place. Thus, patent protection should not be granted to inventions and other results of intellectual activity, the development or use of which may entail an unacceptable level of biological risks (exceptions may be used in certain cases in the interests of national security). The paper examines doctrinal and legislative approaches to concretization and consideration of biosafety principles in law, and it presents proposals for making appropriate changes to Russian law developed on the basis of an analysis of the requirements of special and patent legislation.