Copyright Law

• Copyright law is the oldest form of intellectual property law, and it dates back to 1790. The original copyright law established a 14-year term for protection of copyright, with the ability to renew it for another 14 years if the author was still living. By the year 2000, Congress had extended copyright law to 50 years after the death of the author. Copyright law originally only covered exact copies of an author's work, but that has changed as well. In 1884, it was decided by the Supreme Court that photographs could be copyrighted. In 1971, Congress protected musical recordings, and in 1979 software code was added to the list.
  
  

Trademark Law

• The first trademark lawsuit involved Winchester, but the term "trademark" was not used. The case took place in 1837 and was based on the general tort of fraud. It was in the 1840s that the U.S. courts decided to make trademark infringement a cause for action. Original trademarks were required to carry the name of the manufacturer on them. Trademark laws protecting symbols, fanciful names and geographic names were not covered under trademark law until the end of the 19th century. Trademark law continued to grow, and by the end of the 20th century it covered uniforms worn, layouts of printed material, packaging and numerous other things.
  
  

Patent Law

• The first American patent was issued on July 13th, 1836, for traction wheels. The inventor was named John Ruggles, and he lived in Thomaston, Maine. In 1930, patent law saw a major breakthrough with the Plant Patent Act. Before that year, plants were considered products of nature, but the Plant Patent Act was formed to protect distinct varieties of plants created through asexual reproduction. Later, the law was expanded to protect genetically modified plants as well. Surgical procedures were unavailable for patent until 1950, but now the Patent and Trademark Office issues 10 or more surgical procedure patents every week. Computer software was also originally exempt from patents, but in 1981 the U.S. Supreme Court upheld the first software patent, and since then patents for software have gained in strength.
  
  

European Intellectual Property Law

• The intellectual property laws in America have their foundation in much older laws developed in Europe. The idea of patents was first put into law in Venice in 1474, as a way for inventors to have sole rights over inventions for a limited period of time. The 1623 Statute on Monopolies was the first law to use the term patent, and much of the early patent law in America is based on that same statute. American copyright law is strongly based on English copyright law as well, which was first set down in "An Act for the Encouragement of Learning, by Vesting the Copies of Printed Books in the Authors or Purchasers of such Copies, during the Times therein mentioned," more commonly known as the Statute of Anne.
  
  

Modern Intellectual Property Law

• The term "intellectual property" did not become commonly used until after the second world war. Since then it has become standard for lawyers to use the term. The Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA) has been most effective in promoting the use. Since its inception, the MPAA has lobbied Congress for stronger intellectual property rights in the United States. In 1954, an American scholar argued for right of publicity and most U.S. jurisdictions enacted laws favoring the idea, further strengthening the power of intellectual property laws in the country.