Trade dispute Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Trade dispute - Essay Example However, these wholesalers are usually affiliated with manufacturers, who can legally prohibit retailers from selling the products of competitors. Furthermore, because retailing licenses are required and existing merchants can block the granting of new ones, it is difficult to establish large chain stores that would be less reliant upon existing wholesalers and more prices competitive. The system was criticized because the GATT consensus decision-making rules meant that a party could prevent the dispute settlement process from starting and, even if the process was allowed to go forward, a losing party could prevent formal adoption of a decision against it (and losing parties did so more frequently over time). (Robert, 89) Without adoption, the report remained in limbo; it expressed the view of three experts but had no status in GATT. Thus, the dispute remained unresolved. As a result, there was a perception that the GATT system was not adequate. (Busch, and Reinhardt, 163) Moreover, it was believed that cases that should have been resolved in the system were never even brought to it because of this perceived shortcoming. In the Uruguay Round trade negotiations, the United States in particular wanted to improve and strengthen the dispute settlement system. ... In other words, it gives the owner exclusive rights to the idea or product. A patent is filed with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office in Washington D.C. Patents is considered intellectual property rights and is protected by state and federal laws. If the patent is granted, it is usually granted for a period of time, making the product fair game after the period ends. The Federal Patent Statute of 1952, which was enacted by Congress, is â€Å"intended to provide an incentive for inventors to invent and make their inventions public and to protect patented inventions from infringement† (Cheeseman, 323). As with all cases, the loser can appeal the case. In the case of Vonage, if they were to appeal this case, they would do so through the U.S. Court of Appeals. In the patent infringement case of Vonage versus Sprint, a jury trial was held in the Kansas City, Kansas U.S. District Court, the city of Sprint’s headquarters. Federal courts are the ones that hear patent cases, n ot state courts. These courts also have exclusive jurisdiction. Exclusive jurisdiction occurs when only one court holds jurisdiction in the case, in this case it was Kansas City. The Vonage case was considered a civil trial, not a criminal trial because it occurred between two businesses and was not between a business and the government. If the case had been filed by the government, it would have been a criminal case. (Robert, 22) There are many differences between civil and criminal cases. In both cases, civil and criminal, a jury decides the verdict, however with a civil case; the jury does not need to reach a unanimous vote as it does with a criminal trial. With a civil trial the â€Å"judgment for plaintiff requires specific