The Australian government has released the draft report of its Pharmaceutical Patents Review, which had been tasked to “review the effectiveness of the Australian patent system in providing timely access to affordable pharmaceutical and medical treatments and supporting innovation.” The…
Last month, the U.S. Trade Representative’s Trade Policy Report raised some eyebrows when it scolded Canada for not meeting its ACTA “obligations,” despite the fact that the Agreement is not in effect. (See for instance, Michael Geist’s blog quoting the…
Yesterday the Washington International Trade Association (WITA) held a panel on “21st Century Issues” in the Trans Pacific Partnership negotiations, which featured speakers on e-commerce/telecommunications, SOEs, regulatory coherence, and intellectual property. According to an account of the discussion on ustr.gov,…
Sen. Max Baucus (Chairman of the Senate Finance Committee) and Sen. Orin Hatch (the Committee’s Ranking Minority Member) wrote Acting U.S. Trade Representative Demetrios Marantis on March 22 asking for “comprehensive, strong, binding and enforceable” intellectual property protections in the…
In this year’s State of the Union Address, President Obama announced talks for a Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership with the European Union. This agreement will likely include provisions on intellectual property (IP), which are often controversial . If…
Today the Senate Finance Committee held a hearing on “The President’s 2013 Trade Agenda.” Opening statements, a webcast, and instructions for submitting comments to the record are all here. The sole witness at the hearing was Acting United States Trade…
The Supreme Court decided the long anticipated Kirtsaeng case today, upholding an interpretation that the first sale (exhaustion) rule in the U.S. allows the parallel importation of copyrighted products voluntarily released in other countries with the right holder’s consent. The…
Civil Society Declaration released by 38 European and International organisations, to exclude from the upcoming Trans-Atlantic Free Trade Agreement (TAFTA) any provisions related to patents, copyright, trademarks, data protection, geographical indications, or other forms of so-called “intellectual property”. Last year,…
Dear H.E. Dr. Manmohan Singh, We, the undersigned organizations from Thailand, are writing this letter to express our grave concern over the Indian Government’s shift in their position on the EU-India bilateral free trade agreement (FTA), which is to compromise…
Japanese Prime Minister Abe Shinto is expected to announce his nation’s intention to enter the Trans Pacific Partnership negotiations at 6pm on Friday. To join the negotiations, Japan will need to win the consent of Australia, New Zealand and the…
The eleven countries negotiating the TPP are in negotiations in Singapore from March 4 through 13. Inside U.S. Trade reports that “the main issue intellectual ptoperty negotiators are discussing here is enforcement… negotiators have made more progress here than in…
[Delhi Network of Positive People] With the goal concluding the agreement by early April fast approaching, negotiations have now reached an intense phase with regular meetings to fast track its conclusion. The Indian Prime Minister has reportedly asked the Indian…