Towards Designing an Ideal Patent System

An ideal patent system balances the returns to inventors and the dissemination of new technologies. This article examines legal policy instruments - encompassing duration, scope and strength of patent protection, as well as invention disclosure and novelty requirements - and R&D subsidies that help sustain growth in GDP. The paper studies the issues associated with designing an effective patent system, surveys the industrial property literature and delineates the focal points of debate among researchers and policy-makers