Harvard College v. Canada (Commissioner of Patents)

Harvard College (plaintiff) sought a patent for its "oncomouse" — a genetically altered mouse with heightened cancer susceptibility, useful for research — covering both the production process and the resulting mice, extending its claims to all non-human mammals. The Patent Examiner rejected the application, concluding higher life forms fell outside the statutory definition of "invention," and the Commissioner of Patents and Trial Division agreed, though the Federal Court of Appeal reversed in Harvard's favor.