The COVID-19 Pandemic and the TRIPS Waiver: Patents and Flexibility
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Rourke, M
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Abstract
The World Trade Organization's Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS) provides for global minimum standard patents. These patents potentially limit access to products and processes for the surveillance, tracking, diagnosis and treatment of COVID-19. A possible solution currently under consideration is a TRIPS waiver of the implementation, application and enforcement for the prevention, containment or treatment of COVID-19. This article addresses the ways that TRIPS patents might be mediated including through TRIPS flexibilities. The article argues that there are sufficient means of derogating from patents (and potentially copyright, industrial designs and undisclosed information), although they alone will not resolve the access problems. The article concludes that the key patent problem is the transfer of know-how and that developing new ideas about addressing these patent know-how transfers is the presently unaddressed challenge.
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Journal of law and medicine
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29
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3
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This article was first published by Thomson Reuters in the Journal of Law and Medicine and should be cited as Lawson, C; Rourke, M, The COVID-19 Pandemic and the TRIPS Waiver: Patents and Flexibility, Journal of law and medicine, 2022, 29 (3), pp. 663-676. For all subscription inquiries please phone, from Australia: 1300 304 195, from Overseas: +61 2 8587 7980 or online at legal.thomsonreuters.com.au/search. The official PDF version of this article can also be purchased separately from Thomson Reuters at http://sites.thomsonreuters.com.au/journals/subscribe-or-purchase.
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Commercial law
Intellectual property law
Private law and civil obligations
Medical and health law
Health services and systems
Law in context
COVID-19
TRIPS
patents
Intellectual property
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Lawson, C; Rourke, M, The COVID-19 Pandemic and the TRIPS Waiver: Patents and Flexibility, Journal of law and medicine, 2022, 29 (3), pp. 663-676