Introduction
1. The Emergence of Human Dignity as a Barrier to Patenting Biotechnology in European Patent Law
2. No Coherent Standard of Human Dignity in European Patent Law
3. A Jurisprudential Inquiry of Human Dignity
4. Findings and a Blueprint for an Overarching Court
5. Conclusion
Biography
Marianne Walsh Fryer holds a PhD in intellectual property law from the University of Galway, where she taught information technology law, AI ethics, LawTech innovation and criminal law. In this book, she examines the intersection of human dignity, bioethics and biotechnology patent law across European legal frameworks. Drawing on expertise in patent law, philosophy, constitutional law and human rights jurisprudence, she addresses critical questions about how fragmented European patent systems balance innovation with fundamental ethical principles. She proposes patent law institutional reform to achieve greater legal coherence in adjudicating human dignity concerns surrounding morally controversial biotechnological inventions, particularly those involving human embryos and genetic engineering technologies like CRISPR-Cas9.
