Prof. Goodwin's Article Published in GeneWatch's Winter Edition

In A Return To Judging: Genetics and Biotechnologies in the Courts (published in the Winter Edition of GeneWatch), Professor Michele Goodwin argues against judicial minimalism in biotech cases. Goodwin's invited submission critiques judicial formalism in contemporary cases that, as she argues, represent a new era of legal challenges. Goodwin suggests that social justice norms in the biotech age may be undermined by strict fidelity to precedent arising from cases that ultimately do not fit the dynamics of contemporary cases. Her article is particularly timely given the case involving whether Myriad's patent on a mutant breast cancer gene should survive judicial scrutiny. Goodwin argues that the socio-legal questions and problems emanating from new technologies demand focused attention from the judiciary in the biotech age.