why can living organisms be patented/
The first patents on life. For over two hundred years living organisms have been excluded from patent laws; life forms were considered a âproduct of natureâ and not a human invention. The non-patentable status of living organisms changed with the 1980 landmark Supreme Court case Diamond v. Chakrabarty. disastrous decline in genetic diversity could be the result of patenting of crop species. The genetic diversity inherent in living systems makes patent claims difficult to defend. The development of genetically uniform organisms would make it easier for corporations to maintain their patent claims.