Copy Rights
Florida International University is registered under the copy right office. The full legal name of the service provider is Florida international board of trustee. The office also reorganizes the alternative name of the university which is FIU, Florida International University. The address of the university is also recorded as 11200 SW 8 Street, PC 511, Miami, Florida 33199. There is also an agent designated to receive any notification of claimed infringement who is Charles Young, who is the information security officer. The address of this officer is also provided to make communication possible in case the university has any complaints. The above information indicates the details of the university that can never be used by another organization without the permission of this university.
The copy rights office registers the two names that the university has exclusive rights to use. This is the identity of the university that must be used in all official documents. It distinguishes the organization from others giving the university exclusive rights to the name. The acceptance of the name by the copy rights office also indicates that the name is not used by any other organization in the world. If it is in use, then the user has not registered it and therefore cannot use it in official documents. The office is also aware of copy right infringement and has created an office to deal with such cases. This clearly indicates how important the copy right office is and how serious the issue of infringement is. All important details of the registered organization are provided to ensure that no other organization will ever claim a right to that name.
Patents
Samsung electronics company ltd has 515 patents at the United States patent office. These patents are related to electronics gadget in the line of products that the company produces. Most of the gadgets are not invented by the company but are designed differently leading to most of the patents being design related. Most companies in the electronics industry use existing ideas to design their products in a way that makes them more appealing and efficient therefore attracting more buyers. The concepts used by the manufacturers were developed by other people which implies that the only thing that these companies can patent is the design. The company also has a number of utility patents mainly in mobile devices and lighting. These are a result of research which has yielded new process leading to a different form of patenting.
Utility patents are applied when a process is has being developed that is unique and need to be protected. Samsung has a number of those since it has invested heavily in research and development which has resulted in new designs and processes which it has then protected from commercialization by its rivals. Patent information can be obtained from the official site or Google patents site. Both sites contain patents filled by millions of companies and individuals and their details such the product, design, patent holder, date of application among others. However, the official site covers more details pertaining to an item. This all the information that the applicant provided to the board when applying for the patent. On the other hand, Google patents only covers important details leaving unnecessary information. The main advantage of Google patents is the easing of searching and the clarity of images. Images in the official website are not clear because they are presented the way the applicant provided them.
Trademarks
The research design code manual covers a number of categories that are all covered in the trademarks office. These categories are designed in a way to make it possible for people registering their trade marks to identify the categories under which the mark lies. One of the categories found here is that of celestial bodies, natural phenomena and geographical maps. Celestial bodies such as stars are commonly used in different forms. There are stars of different forms and designs which companies and individuals use to register their companies. These are classified and given different codes to make it easy for users to identity which codes their mark should have. Stars have been manipulated to look different and appear in various patterns. This category covers exhaustively all the different forms of stars that appear in trademarks and gives each a code under which they are registered. There is a category that covers human beings appearing in trademarks. This involves images of real human beings or drawings that resemble any part of a human being. The category is then divided to cover trademarks bearing different parts of the human being starting with those covering the head and bust. There are others that cover silhouettes, people wearing crowns, colonial dresses among others. This covers exclusively all forms of human beings dressed and appearing in different forms and clothing.
Supernatural beings, mythological or legendary beings fantastical beings or unidentifiable beings. These are beings and objects that do not exist in reality but are commonly used and drawn. They are results of myths and peoples creativity. There are also common figures used in trademarks such Santa Claus that are mythical they are known worldwide and are associated with certain occasions, strength among others. This makes them ideal for companies dealing with products related to what these mythical features stand for. They are trademarks and are commonly used for certain things only. The trademarks office recognizes them and issues them different codes to differentiate them.
Intellectual properties are recognized by the patents office and owners given exclusive use of them for a certain period of time. During this period, they receive royalties from companies that commercialize their ideas. The patent office must determine that the idea is new and original and no one else is laying claim to it. The office then establishes the limits trying to reduce the limitations as much as possible while the owner of the idea tries to increase the coverage of the idea. The patent allows the holder to prosecute anyone who tries to use this idea without the consent of the patent holder. This exclusivity is a huge problem in the medical field because it limits the usage of the idea by anybody else in the world. This restricts the use of the idea in medical fields where researchers need access to all available ideas to make it possible for them to develop cures to the myriad diseases affecting the human race. The most restrictive patents have been those dealing with genomes which are around 30,000. Genes play a key role in medicine and are widely used by researchers. The moment a patent is issued it restricts those intending to use the gene in their research or those already using it currently. This is a big problem because it derails most researchers crippling their ability to carry out research.
There are different trademarks that companies use in their products. Toyota relies mainly on one trademark which appears in all its vehicles except Lexus. However, most of its vehicle brands bear a unique trade mark associated with that brand name. This identifies their products as unique and easy to recognize as products of Toyota. However, the most important and recognizable trade mark that appears on all cars is the logo of the company. The company has used this as its logo and trademark since 1989. The company acquired Lexus the same year and released it as a luxury car with an independent logo and trademark. The trademarks of Toyota are all for its cars because that is the main products that it produces. The others are spare parts used in their cars which also bear the trademark of the company.
Ethical Issues in Health Patents
Ethical issues have emerged from patents in health fields. This is because discoveries are supposed to be open to use by other scientists as long as they have not been commercialized making others rich from products that they did not develop on their own. Without free usage of ideas and discoveries that people make it becomes quite hard to develop cures. Researchers are forced to take longer to develop a cure since they have to make their own discoveries. Consequently, more human life is lost since the cure takes longer to develop. This is unethical and unacceptable in medical fields. The role of medicine researchers is to make discoveries meant to help solve health problems that people face. However, patenting their discoveries negates their importance and makes it almost impossible for the idea to contribute towards the good of the society. Most of the patented discoveries involve elements that cannot be used on their own to develop a cure. This implies that they must be used in conjunction with other discoveries made by other people to make something meaningful. Hence, other researchers must be allowed to use the discovery in their studies which eventually will lead to development of something new. This combination of ideas from different people makes it possible to develop cures and different inventions in the world making it possible for science to develop towards the growth of the society. Therefore, as long as researchers continue to patent their discoveries, they will affect the progress made in health which will lead to human beings suffering more due to problems that can be easily solved. This is unethical and should be changed to make it easier for scientists to develop cures for different diseases using their ideas and those of their colleagues working on different parts of the human anatomy in different countries.
Discrimination in Work Places
Discrimination at work places is a common problem in the world. Equal employment and opportunities commission deals with these cases in the United States. The commission requires workers to contact it before filing a discrimination case. This is necessary since the commission is charged with the responsibility of ensuring equality is maintained and is better placed to deal with these cases on behalf of the affected worker without the need of costly court cases. There is a form available in the website that a worker can fill to determine whether their case can be dealt by the commission. If it can, then they can provide all the details of the case through visiting the nearest office or sending an email providing their contact details and all the details of the case. This allows the commission to analyze the case and determine the laws the employer has flouted and the compensation that they should pay to the employee. The most common discrimination cases as illustrated by the litigation statistics available at the commission’s website are race related. They take a significant percentage of the total number of cases that are filled every year. This indicates that there are still employers who have a problem employing people from a different race. Sex is also a common discrimination cause. This mostly affects women who are discriminated in a significant number of work places leading to a substantial number of complaints filled at the equality commission. Race and sex have always been contentious issues leading to discrimination in the United States and in most European countries. Sexual harassment cases have been on the decline in the past three years which is a positive indicator of reform. This may be driven by awareness among employees that they can sue their employers if they are discriminated. In addition, the equality employment commission has been aggressive leading to high number of compensation payments. On the other hand, race related cases have not changed much in the last few years, the available statistics show that the cases have increased which might be attributed to more people reporting cases as opposed to earlier when people would remain silent. There were 33,068 cases reported last year which is a high number as compared to sexual harassment where only 7,256 cases were reported. Therefore, racial discrimination is still a serious problem that requires tough tackling to weed out.
UPS had a CBA that clearly stipulated the conditions under which an employee should be excused from their normal duties. Pregnancy was not one of the issues that was listed among those that required soft duties. Therefore, when Young got pregnant she was already aware of what the policy of the company was. She had worked for the company since 2009 serving as an early morning driver and must have been conversant with the policies of the company. When she requested to be given a medical leave to try out the third in vitro fertilization. She requested a leave extension when she realized she had conceived which was given. However, she later claimed she could no longer lift loads heavier than 20 pounds. She had a medical note from the mid wife to support her claims which she forwarded to the employer. The first issue that arises at this point is that she requested for the note to be written even though the mid wife was not used to issuing them. This indicates that she might have coerced her to write one showing the weight limit. She had not developed any complications that could have served as a warning indicating that she was in dire need of special working conditions for the sake of her pregnancy. In addition, she was aware of the fact that the note would not change her situation since pregnancy related complications were ranked outside injuries sustained during the working period and hence did not qualify for preferential treatment. As a result, the company had no choice but to give her a leave of absence because she was no longer deemed capable of dealing with the duties of a driver. However, the company also erred in failing to check the ability of the worker to carry out her duties. She used to carry letters which implies that most of the load she lifted was less than 20 pounds.
She also used a load lifter if the cargo was heavier than she could handle. Her colleagues also used to assist her load the van when the parcels were heavy. These facts indicate that it was possible for her to work for a few months before her pregnancy made it hard for her to cope with the demands of the job. Therefore, she was justified to request for a readmission to the job. On the other hand, the employer was right when he failed to check the health status of the employee because he trusted the judgment of the mid wife. The verdict of the doctor should not be ignored especially due to the ramifications of such an act if the employee was to develop complications after lifting loads heavier than 20 pounds. In conclusion, the employer was vindicated in their decision to keep her home until she gave birth and was fit to work again. The policies of the company are clear on pregnancy and the employee was already aware of that. No form of discrimination is evident in this case implying that no laws were flouted in the whole saga. Therefore, the Supreme Court will dismiss this case since the defendant did not contravene any of the laws or the CBA agreement.
Employment Laws
Employment laws cover a host of issues that are meant to safe guard the interest of the employer and employee. However, they also tend to expose the employee in instances where they develop a problem and they are deemed unable to work but the company is under no obligation to pay them when at home. The best example arises in the above case where an employee is pregnant and the doctor recommends that she should not lift loads heavier than 20 pounds. The employer does not consider pregnancy as a disability nor a condition that requires special treatment. This is an injustice to women because it is known once women conceive they cannot perform at maximum potential because they must take care of the unborn and their physical condition deteriorates with time. This is a form of discrimination that should be addressed in the law because most women get pregnant during the working careers which affects their output especially in physically demanding jobs. The law must safe guard the interests of pregnant women. This is a clear indicator that some laws are designed in a way that they only cater for the welfare of the employee when working. It fails to cater for issues that are likely to affect workers outside the work place that adversely affect their productivity.
These issues such as pregnancy or accident suffered away from the work place allow the employer to relieve the worker their duties rendering them unemployed and without a source of income at a time when they are in dire need of it. The employer should be compelled to cover some of the expenses of these people such as payments to health insurance for some time during the period when they are suffering. Such a law is necessary because the problems facing the employee are not avoidable. You cannot force a worker to remain without children because of her job, giving birth is part of human life and cannot be neglected just because somebody is employed. Similarly, human beings are bound to face different problems that are not of their making. These problems incapacitate them which renders them unproductive for some time. They are not a result of the employee’s negligence which imply they should not suffer for it. It is understandable that the employer counts wages paid to workers who are not productive as a loss and therefore must cut this expense by any means necessary. They are aided by a law that only covers the relationship between the employer and employee up to the moment the worker leaves the premises of the company. Anything that happens to them outside is not a concern of the company as long as it does not happen when they were running errands on behalf of the employer. This should be extended so that the employer can provide some basic help if the employee is unable to perform their duties due to problems facing them that were caused by factors outside the work place.