Full assessment is necessary to solve

(Graham J. Reynolds University of British Columbia (UBC), Associate Professor, Faculty of Law, “The Precautionary Principle and its Application in the Intellectual Property Context: Towards a Public Domain Impact Assessment,” pg online @ https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=2347922 //pa-ef)

Although recognizing that the risk of harm to the public domain that may flow from the expansion of intellectual property rights differs from the risk of harm to the environment that may flow from persons engaging in polluting or environmentally destructive activities, I suggest that it is appropriate to apply the precautionary principle in the intellectual property context. Both the environment and the public domain provide significant benefits to society. These benefits may be overlooked in favour of other benefits that might flow from development or enhanced intellectual property protection, respectively (such as economic benefits for certain industries or political benefits). As well, in the case of both the environment and the public domain, the impact of harm caused by polluting/environmentally destructive activities and intellectual property expansion, respectively, is both uncertain and difficult to establish.

There are several ways through which a precautionary principle or a precautionary approach14 could be implemented in the intellectual property context. For example, a precautionary principle/approach could be applied in determining whether intellectual property rights such as patents and trade-marks ought to be granted, as an interpretive tool in determining whether rights have been infringed, or at the point at which proposals are submitted to ministers or Cabinet for approval.