Number: RS21882
Title: Collaborative R&D and the Cooperative Research and Technology Enhancement (CREATE) Act
Authors: Wendy H. Schacht, Resources, Science, and Industry Division 
Abstract: The Cooperative Research and Technology Enhancement (CREATE) Act passed the House (H.R. 2391) on March 10, 2004 and the Senate (S. 2192) on June 25, 2004. Reflecting current congressional interest in encouraging cooperative research and development among universities, industry, and government, this legislation addresses issues of patent ownership under collaborative ventures. These identical bills amend 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. The Court 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.)
Pages: 4
Date: January 10, 2005