Title: Waiver of patent on COVID vaccine: re-packaging of TRIPS flexibilities

Authors: Mariya Fatma; P.R.L. Rajavenkatesan

Addresses: VIT School of Law, VIT Chennai, Tamil Nadu, 600127, India ' VIT School of Law, VIT Chennai, Tamil Nadu, 600127, India

Abstract: Innovation, research, and development are important for the development of a society and country, and thus there is a need to protect and encourage these inventions. Patent law provides the perfect tool for incentivising such research. Every country has a different standard of granting protection, and the TRIPS Agreement provides a uniform minimum standard of patent protection in all technology fields. And for the first time since its enforcement after TRIPS enforcement, these standards were compromised in a mutual decision by the WTO in the wake of public health. The article discusses the need for patent law and its importance in providing access to medicine. It also discusses the flexibilities in the TRIPS Agreement and DOHA Declaration for balancing the interests of private parties, i.e., the patent holder and the general public's right to health. The article further analyses the recent decision of the WTO Ministerial Council taken on the TRIPS Agreement about the waiver of patent rights and how such a waiver will be efficient, keeping in mind the proposed effect of this waiver in the wake of the current circumstances.

Keywords: jurisprudence; patent law; patent waiver; public health; compulsory licence; parallel importation; TRIPS Agreement; DOHA Declaration.

DOI: 10.1504/IJIPM.2023.134061

International Journal of Intellectual Property Management, 2023 Vol.13 No.3/4, pp.364 - 380

Received: 29 Aug 2022
Accepted: 08 Nov 2022
Published online: 10 Oct 2023 *

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