Myths of the Medical Methods Exclusion: Medicine and Patents in Nineteenth Century Britain

Burrell, R., & Kelly, C. (2018). Myths of the medical methods exclusion: Medicine and patents in nineteenth century Britain. Legal Studies, 38(4), 607-626. doi:10.1017/lst.2017.21

29 Pages Posted: 5 May 2020

See all articles by Catherine Kelly

Catherine Kelly

University of Bristol

Robert Burrell

University of Melbourne - Law School

Date Written: July 9, 2017

Abstract

This paper explores the interaction of British medical practitioners with the nascent intellectual property system in the nineteenth century. It challenges the generally accepted view that throughout the nineteenth century there was a settled or professionally agreed hostility to patenting. It demonstrates that medical practitioners made more substantial use of the patent system and related forms of protection than has previously been recognised. Nevertheless, the rate of patenting remained lower than in other fields of technical endeavour, but this can largely be explained by the public nature of medical practice during this period. This paper therefore seeks to retell the history of the exclusion of medical methods from patent protection, an exclusion whose history has produced a substantial body of scholarship. However, its aims go beyond this in that it also seeks to illuminate how medical practitioners engaged with the broader political and policy landscape in order to secure financial remuneration for their inventions. Through an exploration of how prominent doctors interacted with Parliament around claims for a financial reward, it demonstrates that doctors sought to use reputational advantage to leverage financial success and the important role that Parliament could play in that process.

Keywords: Methods of Medical Treatment; Legal History; Medical History; Medical Ethics; Patents

Suggested Citation

Kelly, Catherine and Burrell, Robert, Myths of the Medical Methods Exclusion: Medicine and Patents in Nineteenth Century Britain (July 9, 2017). Burrell, R., & Kelly, C. (2018). Myths of the medical methods exclusion: Medicine and patents in nineteenth century Britain. Legal Studies, 38(4), 607-626. doi:10.1017/lst.2017.21, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=3572117

Catherine Kelly (Contact Author)

University of Bristol ( email )

University of Bristol,
Senate House, Tyndall Avenue
Bristol, BS8 ITH
United Kingdom

Robert Burrell

University of Melbourne - Law School ( email )

University Square
185 Pelham Street, Carlton
Victoria, Victoria 3010
Australia

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