On November 6, 2023 I submitted a response to the public comments which can be found here. I have also included my comments in full on this blog in a series of posts including the below. The only change in my submission is...more
It came as something of a shock in May, 2021 when the Biden administration voiced support for waiver of intellectual property protection mandated under the TRIPS agreement for COVID-19 vaccines (see "Biden Administration...more
The “African Group” in the World Trade Organization (WTO) is pushing for discussions—and potentially renegotiation of international trading rules—on how developing countries do and can acquire technology to build resilience...more
On April 26th, Ambassador Katherine Tai, U.S. Trade Representative (USTR), issued the 2023 Special 301 Report. In a press release, the USTR stated that "[i]nnovation and creativity are at the heart of American...more
Key Points - The EU aims to harmonize patent protection rules and flexibilities with a layer on top of national rules. This is in line with long-term efforts by the EU institutions to harmonize patent rules and motivated,...more
Summary - The U.S. International Trade Commission (USITC) is soliciting public comment on the proposed expansion of a June 2022 World Trade Organization (WTO) Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property...more
On February 1, 2023, the U.S. International Trade Commission (the “ITC”) initiated an investigation into the impact of intellectual property (“IP”) rights on the production, supply, and availability of diagnostics and...more
At the end of last year, World Trade Organization (WTO) members agreed that the 13th Ministerial Conference (MC13) of the WTO will take place in Abu Dhabi, the capital of the United Arab Emirates (UAE), in February 2024....more
On December 16, the Council for Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights of the World Trade Organization (WTO) issued a report recommending that the General Council extend the deadline by which the WTO would...more
On December 6, the same day that the U.S. Trade Representative issued a statement on the June 17, 2022 Ministerial Decision that authorized developing Members to use the subject matter of a patent required for the production...more
Key Points - On December 6, days before a deadline for WTO members to decide whether to expand the TRIPS waiver for COVID-19 vaccines to cover COVID-19 diagnostics and therapeutics as well, the Office of the USTR...more
It is often observed (or asserted) that a fair compromise in a dispute has likely been reached when both sides are not particularly happy about it. This is not always the case, of course, and is more likely not to be the...more
Overview - In March 2020, the world was upended and faced with unimaginable challenges. The COVID-19 pandemic posed threats that had not been experienced in the United States since the smallpox epidemic over 100 years...more
As we previously reported, some members of the World Trade Organization (WTO), including India and South Africa, had called for a waiver of intellectual property enforcement on COVID-19 pandemic-related diagnostic kits,...more
On June 16, 2022, the World Trade Organization (WTO) agreed to a partial waiver of intellectual property rights related to COVID-19 vaccines. The agreement came on the heels of an all-night negotiating session. The agreement...more
Last Friday 17 June 2022, the WTO member states came to an agreement on the long negotiated TRIPS Waiver. In its annual 6 days conference (the Ministerial Conference), the WTO member states agreed that all developing country...more
Earlier this month, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce sent a letter to members of Congress indicating that the Chamber "strongly supports" recent House and Senate legislation that the Chamber noted "would prohibit the...more
As posted Monday, BIO (the Biotechnology Innovation Organization) provided a link to the supposed compromise agreement reached recently to permit WTO member states to waive patent protection for "subject matter required for...more
Earlier today, the American Intellectual Property Law Association (AIPLA), Intellectual Property Owners Association (IPO), Licensing Executives Society (LES) International, LES USA & Canada, and New York Intellectual Property...more
A Reuters report published last week indicated that the United States, European Union, India, and South Africa had reached an agreement on a waiver with respect to patents for COVID-19 vaccines. The text of the compromise...more
According to a Reuters report published earlier today, the United States, European Union, India, and South Africa have reached an agreement on a waiver with respect to patents for COVID-19 vaccines...more
Earlier this month, Sen. Thom Tillis (R-NC), the Ranking Member of the Subcommittee on Intellectual Property of the Senate Committee of the Judiciary, wrote to United States Trade Representative Katherine C. Tai to express...more
Last week, United States Trade Representative Katherine C. Tai responded to a series of letters sent by a group of Senators regarding a proposal by India and South Africa to waive certain provisions of the World Trade...more
In a letter sent to U.S. Trade Representative Katherine Tai last week, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce expressed disappointment that the Biden Administration "continues to entertain actions, such as a waiver of the TRIPS...more
Four months ago, the U.S. became one of 100 countries supporting the proposal presented a year ago to the World Trade Organization (WTO) by India and South Africa that intellectual property protection for COVID-19 vaccines be...more