J. E. M. Ag Supply, Inc., Dba Farm Advantage, Inc. v. Pioneer Hi-Bred International, Inc.

Summary

Justice Thomas, writing for six Justices, held that newly developed plant breeds qualify for utility patent protection under 35 U.S.C. § 101 and that neither the Plant Patent Act nor the Plant Variety Protection Act makes its protections exclusive or removes plants from § 101. The Court affirmed the Federal Circuit's judgment upholding summary judgment for Pioneer on the patent-eligibility question. Justice Scalia also concurred separately, explaining that Chakrabarty's authoritative interpretation of § 101 made the canon against implied repeal controlling. Justice Breyer, joined by Justice Stevens, dissented, reasoning that the specific plant-protection statutes exclude their subject matter from general utility patent protection and that the majority's interpretation undermines statutory seed-saving and research exemptions. Justice O'Connor did not participate.