Ownership, Rights, Patents and Trademarks Questions

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1. Why is the title to real property permanent whereas some intellectual property is limited in the time that it is protected?

1) The public policy rationale for protecting intellectual property in a different way than real property is that IP laws facilitate and encourage the pursuit and disclosure of innovation into the public domain for the common good. An incentive is created by granting authors and inventors exclusive rights to exploit their works and invention for a limited period. The period is limited so that a monopoly is not created and a free exchange and pursuit of ideas can still exist. Real property is typically private property and does not benefit the common good, and so its protections are different. However, do note that title to real property is not necessarily permanent: private property can be seized in certain instances by the government under eminent domain. Property owners can also sell or devise the title to their real property.

Look at this web site and see what it has to say about personal property.

http://www.orps.state.ny.us/legal/opinions/v7/59.htm As you can see it even says that personal property can be on a case by case basis so be careful of the wording and presumptions it makes.
It's best NOT to use Wikipedia for any graduate or undergraduate level work. However, Wikipedia did have this to say and I thought you would find it useful.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Property

Even Wikipedia says it themselves here http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Why_Wikipedia_is_not_so_great

Lets also define Intellectual Property - In law, intellectual property (IP) is an umbrella term for various legal entitlements which attach to certain types of information, ideas, or other intangibles in their expressed form. The holder of this legal entitlement is generally entitled to exercise various exclusive rights in relation to the subject matter of the IP. The term intellectual property reflects the idea that this subject matter is the product of the mind or the intellect, and that IP rights may be protected at law in the same way as any other form of property. However, the use of the term and the concepts it is said to embody are the subject of some controversy. Intellectual property laws vary from jurisdiction to jurisdiction, such that the acquisition, registration or enforcement of IP rights must be pursued or obtained separately in each territory of interest. However, these laws are becoming increasingly harmonized through the effects of international treaties such as the 1994 World Trade Organization (WTO) Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPs), while other treaties may facilitate registration in more than one jurisdiction at a time. Certain forms of IP rights do not require registration in order to be enforced. wikipedia.org/wiki/Intellectual_property

Let's also define Real Property - Real property is a legal term encompassing real estate and ownership interests in real estate (immovable property). It is a type of property differentiated from personal property. This article discusses the ownership of land using the interpretation of real property as a legal term used in Anglo-American common law jurisdictions. Other legal geopolitical systems of government have different legal interpretations concerning the ownership of land. Terminology varies in these systems, as well: for instance, heritable property in Scotland; immovable property in Canada, United States, India, Malta, Cyprus, most of Europe including Russia, also South America, Malaysia, South Africa, Pakistan, Bangladesh, and many other countries and continents; and immobilizer in France. wikipedia.org/wiki/Real_property

I also thought you would benefit greatly from this article I found for you. ...