Public Private Divide
A THREE DIMENSIONAL APPROACH TO THE PUBLIC- PRIVATE DISTINCTION Paul M. Schoenhard
Paul Schoenhard is a graduate from Harvard Law School and he focuses his practice on patent litigation in federal courts. He also has a technical background in mathematics and computer science. Paul’s litigation experience spans cases relating to consumer electronics, computer software, internet-related technologies, telecommunications, and semiconductors. In addition to his active practice, Paul frequently publishes and lectures on topics relating to intellectual property. He has served as a visiting professor at the University of Utah, S.J. Quinney College of Law, and is currently serving as a member of the adjunct faculty at American University, Washington College of Law and also works as an associate at Ropes & Gray LLP.
This article which is written in the backdrop of the United States constitution advocates a three dimensional approach required for the understanding of the private public divide. The author strives to think out of the box with the quintessential question “Is X public/private in relation to Y?” instead of the traditional two dimensional question “Is X public or private?” He is a strong follower of Duncan Kennedy who believed that the private public distinction although dead it still rules us from the grave.
Earlier the public and the private domain where easy to identify and differentiate. In Dartmouth College v. Woodward[1], The Supreme Court addresses the public/private divide in corporations. Public corporations are such as only founded by the government for public purposes where the whole interest belong to the Government. If, therefore the foundation is private the corporation is private however extensive the uses maybe to which it is devoted.
But now such a distinction is no longer cut and dried. The author proceeds with the hope that the public private divide is still alive and kicking. He asserts that it is human nature to classify
Paul Schoenhard is a graduate from Harvard Law School and he focuses his practice on patent litigation in federal courts. He also has a technical background in mathematics and computer science. Paul’s litigation experience spans cases relating to consumer electronics, computer software, internet-related technologies, telecommunications, and semiconductors. In addition to his active practice, Paul frequently publishes and lectures on topics relating to intellectual property. He has served as a visiting professor at the University of Utah, S.J. Quinney College of Law, and is currently serving as a member of the adjunct faculty at American University, Washington College of Law and also works as an associate at Ropes & Gray LLP.
This article which is written in the backdrop of the United States constitution advocates a three dimensional approach required for the understanding of the private public divide. The author strives to think out of the box with the quintessential question “Is X public/private in relation to Y?” instead of the traditional two dimensional question “Is X public or private?” He is a strong follower of Duncan Kennedy who believed that the private public distinction although dead it still rules us from the grave.
Earlier the public and the private domain where easy to identify and differentiate. In Dartmouth College v. Woodward[1], The Supreme Court addresses the public/private divide in corporations. Public corporations are such as only founded by the government for public purposes where the whole interest belong to the Government. If, therefore the foundation is private the corporation is private however extensive the uses maybe to which it is devoted.
But now such a distinction is no longer cut and dried. The author proceeds with the hope that the public private divide is still alive and kicking. He asserts that it is human nature to classify