Legal Elements of the “Ayahuasca” Patent Case (November, 1999) (Wiser) [BW99-10]

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The challenge to the patent on the Amazon rainforest plant used for ayahuasca is being brought by:

the Center for International Environmental Law (CIEL), on behalf of the Coordinating Body of Indigenous Organizations of the Amazon Basin (COICA); and the Coalition for Amazonian Peoples and Their Environment (Amazon Coalition).

Shamans of many indigenous tribes of the Amazon collect the plant — which has the scientific name Banisteriopsis caapi — and process it with other rainforest plants, according to traditional techniques, to produce a ceremonial drink —“ayahuasca,” also called “yagé”. The shamans (traditional healers and religious leaders) use ayahuasca in religious and healing ceremonies to heal the sick, meet with spirits, and divine the future. According to tradition, ayahuasca is prepared and administered only under the guidance of a shaman. Plant Patent No. 5,751, issued to Loren Miller on June 17, 1986, claims rights over a supposed variety of B. caapi, which Mr. Miller dubbed “Da Vine.”

Our request to the Patent and Trademark Office (PTO) has two parts, described below. The request for reexamination
seeks cancellation of this particular patent. In a letter to the Commissioner, we call for a more general review of the
treatment of traditional knowledge and biological diversity under United States patent laws.

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