The patent holder wants the owners of all canopy businesses operating in Costa Rica to apply for a license. He plans to collect royalties from canopy tours of $15 for every foreign tourist and $10 for locals.
Some businesses have followed the plaintiff's recommendations and currently are offering the popular boca under different names like "Chichifrijo," "Chifrijol," "El Innombrable" ("The Nameless") or simply "Chicharrón & Frijoles."
The amount of BP money that will flow into Gulf Coast restoration over the next two decades is prodigious. Both BP and the government deserve credit for heading off a nasty and prolonged legal battle. What we still don't know — and may not know for a very long time — is the extent of the damage the spill caused.
The news exploded this week: Miguel Cordero, a humble restaurateur, plans to sue 49 different establishments across Costa Rica, including some chain restaurants like KFC and Spoon. Cordero is demanding a total of $15 million in damages for one reason: He says he invented chifrijo, and everybody else has been cashing in on his recipe.
While the court ruled in favor of the defendant, freedom of expression experts said the preliminary ruling does not necessarily signal a free-for-all when it comes to criticizing public officials.
