Sovereignty and its Presuppositions: Before 9/11 and After

Is the modern states system in terminal decline? Are we witnessing a great transformation in that regard? Are the events of 9/11 indicative of that? Or is state sovereignty evolving, yet again, in response to scientific, technological, economic and social changes – as it has done throughout the post-medieval era of its existence? That latter line of argument is put forward in this essay.     

Innovations and intellectual property: the case of genomic patenting.

In an effort to balance static and dynamic efficiency in the production and use of knowledge, societies institute intellectual property policies. In the United States, the patent system is a well-established mechanism to provide inventors with time-limited protection of new technologies in exchange for disclosure of information about their inventions. Emerging biotechnology, specifically the filing of patents on gene sequences, raises serious questions about whether the patent system is appropriately weighing societal costs and benefits in its grants of intellectual property protection. Gene sequences represent a hybrid case between discrete inventions and more general pieces of information that are useful for many, potentially very different, purposes. This information content in genes makes it possible for a patent on a gene to cover a wide range of possible technological applications and, as a result, be of unknown breadth when issued. This analysis explores the potential effect of these characteristics on future innovation in biotechnology. Copyright 2003 by the Association for Public Policy Analysis and Management.     

Fraud in courtship: Annulment and divorce

The possibility of fraud exists in any contract. Courts and custom allow some amount of fraud before voiding the contract. The same principles hold for marriage. This paper provides a comparative analysis of annulment and divorce, shows that there exists a socially optimal amount of fraud in marriage, and demonstrates how changes in the locale's divorce regime result in changing demand for annulments. While substitutability between annulment and divorce is limited, annulment is shown to become more valuable for introducing fault when the divorce regime shifts to no fault. As European nations harmonize their family laws, they should be conscious of this substitutibility.