Supreme Court Compromises on Patenting Gene Materials in Unanimous Myriad Ruling

The U.S. Supreme Court ruled June 13 that isolated DNA is not eligible for patenting but that genetic materials created “synthetically” are patent eligible (Association for Molecular Pathology v. Myriad Genetics Inc., U.S., 12-398, 6/13/13).

The unanimous decision, written by Justice Clarence Thomas, reverses in part the 2-1 ruling by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit as well as 30 years of patent grants by the Patent and Trademark Office. The court held that the extracted and isolated DNA from a human body is a “product of nature” and thus an exception to statutory subject ...