2026-1-1 – Theory and practice of intellectual property

Theory and practice of intellectual property
№ 1 / 2026

ISSN (Print) 2308-0361
ISSN (Online) 2519-2744

DOI: https://doi.org/10.33731/tpip.2026.1.1

Submitted    2026-01-12
Accepted    2026-02-04
Published      2026-03-12

Compliance with public order and generally accepted principles of morality as a condition for providing legal protection to human genome editing technologies

Olha Omelchenko
Ph.D. (Law),
Head at the Science Department for Research on Intellectual Property Rights and Human Rights in Healthcare,
Intellectual Property Scientific Research Institute of the National Academy of Legal Sciences of Ukraine
Kyiv, Ukraine
https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3265-205X

Abstract
The article examines the compliance of human genome editing technologies with the conditions for granting legal protection to inventions in the context of their consistency with “order public” and generally accepted principles of morality. International and national law contain a number of provisions on public order and morality as defining categories, compliance with which is a condition for granting legal protection to inventions. At the same time, public order and morality are evaluative categories, the understanding and perception of which is dynamic in accordance with changes in time and the development of society. The current practice of the European Patent Office and foreign courts demonstrates the relevance of legal scientific analysis of objects that appear due to the development of life sciences and claim legal protection as inventions in the context of their non-contradiction with public order and generally accepted principles of morality. An important aspect is finding a balance between protecting social values and preventing excessive restrictions on the legal instruments for patenting certain objects.

Keywords: invention, human genome, legal protection, public order, morality, pharmacy

References

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