his property—which we think is unlikely—the state will take ownership of his property by eminent domain.”
Eminent domain referred to the right of the state to take private property without the owner’s consent. It was almost always invoked for public uses. “But eminent domain is intended for schools or highways…”
“The state can do it in this case,” Rodriguez said. “And it will.”
Her father stared at them, thunderstruck. “Are you joking?”
“No, Mr. Burnet. It’s a legitimate taking, and the state will exercise its right.”
Alex said, “Then what is the purpose of this meeting?”
“We thought it appropriate to inform you of the situation, in case you wanted to drop further litigation.”
“You’re suggesting we end litigation?” she said.
“I would advise it,” Rodriguez said to her, “if this were my client.”
“Ending litigation saves the state considerable expense.”
“It saves everyone expense,” Rodriguez said.
“So what are you proposing as a settlement, for us to drop the case?”
“Nothing whatever, Ms. Burnet. I’m sorry if you misunderstood me. This is not a negotiation. We’re simply here to explain our position, so that you can make an informed decision in your best interest.”
Her father cleared his throat. “You’re telling us that you’re taking my cells, no matter what. You’ve sold them for three billion dollars, no matter what. And you’re keeping all of that money, no matter what.”
“Bluntly put,” Rodriguez said, “but not inaccurate.”
The meeting ended. Rodriguez and his team thanked them for their time, said their good-byes, and left the room. Alex nodded to her father and then followed the other attorneys outside. Through the glass, Frank Burnet watched as they talked further.
“Those fuckers,” he said. “What kind of world do we live in?”
“My sentiments exactly,” said a voice from behind him. Burnet turned.
A young man wearing horn-rimmed glasses was sitting in the far corner of the conference room. Burnet remembered him; he had come in during the meeting, bringing coffee and mugs, which he had put on the sideboard. Then he had sat down in the corner for the rest of the meeting. Burnet had assumed he was a junior member of the firm, but now the young man was speaking with confidence.
“Let’s face it, Mr. Burnet,” he said, “you’ve been screwed. It turns out your cells are very rare and valuable. They’re efficient manufacturers of cytokines, chemicals that fight cancer. That’s the real reason you survived your disease. As a matter of fact, your cells churn out cytokines more efficiently than any commercial process. That’s why those cells are worth so much money. The UCLA doctors didn’t create anything or invent anything. They didn’t genetically modify anything. They just took your cells, grew them in a dish, and sold the dish to BioGen. And you, my friend, were screwed .”
“Who are you?” Burnet said.
“And you have no hope of justice,” the young man continued, “because the courts are totally incompetent. The courts don’t realize how fast things are changing. They don’t understand we are already in a new world. They don’t get the new issues. And because they are technically illiterate, they don’t understand what procedures are done—or in this case, not done. Your cells were stolen and sold. Plain and simple. And the court decided that was just fine.”
Burnet gave a long sigh.
“But,” the man continued, “thieves can still get their comeuppance.”
“How’s that?”
“Because UCLA did nothing to change your cells, another company could take those same cells, make minor genetic modifications, and sell them as a new product.”
“But BioGen already has my cells.”
“True. But cell lines are fragile. Things happen to them.”
“What do you mean?”
“Cultures are vulnerable to fungus, bacterial infection, contamination, mutation. All kinds of things can go
Eminent domain referred to the right of the state to take private property without the owner’s consent. It was almost always invoked for public uses. “But eminent domain is intended for schools or highways…”
“The state can do it in this case,” Rodriguez said. “And it will.”
Her father stared at them, thunderstruck. “Are you joking?”
“No, Mr. Burnet. It’s a legitimate taking, and the state will exercise its right.”
Alex said, “Then what is the purpose of this meeting?”
“We thought it appropriate to inform you of the situation, in case you wanted to drop further litigation.”
“You’re suggesting we end litigation?” she said.
“I would advise it,” Rodriguez said to her, “if this were my client.”
“Ending litigation saves the state considerable expense.”
“It saves everyone expense,” Rodriguez said.
“So what are you proposing as a settlement, for us to drop the case?”
“Nothing whatever, Ms. Burnet. I’m sorry if you misunderstood me. This is not a negotiation. We’re simply here to explain our position, so that you can make an informed decision in your best interest.”
Her father cleared his throat. “You’re telling us that you’re taking my cells, no matter what. You’ve sold them for three billion dollars, no matter what. And you’re keeping all of that money, no matter what.”
“Bluntly put,” Rodriguez said, “but not inaccurate.”
The meeting ended. Rodriguez and his team thanked them for their time, said their good-byes, and left the room. Alex nodded to her father and then followed the other attorneys outside. Through the glass, Frank Burnet watched as they talked further.
“Those fuckers,” he said. “What kind of world do we live in?”
“My sentiments exactly,” said a voice from behind him. Burnet turned.
A young man wearing horn-rimmed glasses was sitting in the far corner of the conference room. Burnet remembered him; he had come in during the meeting, bringing coffee and mugs, which he had put on the sideboard. Then he had sat down in the corner for the rest of the meeting. Burnet had assumed he was a junior member of the firm, but now the young man was speaking with confidence.
“Let’s face it, Mr. Burnet,” he said, “you’ve been screwed. It turns out your cells are very rare and valuable. They’re efficient manufacturers of cytokines, chemicals that fight cancer. That’s the real reason you survived your disease. As a matter of fact, your cells churn out cytokines more efficiently than any commercial process. That’s why those cells are worth so much money. The UCLA doctors didn’t create anything or invent anything. They didn’t genetically modify anything. They just took your cells, grew them in a dish, and sold the dish to BioGen. And you, my friend, were screwed .”
“Who are you?” Burnet said.
“And you have no hope of justice,” the young man continued, “because the courts are totally incompetent. The courts don’t realize how fast things are changing. They don’t understand we are already in a new world. They don’t get the new issues. And because they are technically illiterate, they don’t understand what procedures are done—or in this case, not done. Your cells were stolen and sold. Plain and simple. And the court decided that was just fine.”
Burnet gave a long sigh.
“But,” the man continued, “thieves can still get their comeuppance.”
“How’s that?”
“Because UCLA did nothing to change your cells, another company could take those same cells, make minor genetic modifications, and sell them as a new product.”
“But BioGen already has my cells.”
“True. But cell lines are fragile. Things happen to them.”
“What do you mean?”
“Cultures are vulnerable to fungus, bacterial infection, contamination, mutation. All kinds of things can go
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