WTO TRIPS Council discussions on the transparency of R&D costs and the pricing of medicines: The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly

In February 2020, the World Trade Organization (WTO) de-restricted the minutes of the TRIPS Council’s October 2019 session. While the official minutes (IP/C/M/93/Add.1) were circulated to WTO members on 9 December 2019, the October 2019 minutes were only available to… Continue Reading

FOIA: Records of USTR Lighthizer Bilateral Meetings at 2018 World Economic Forum in Davos

Through a Freedom of Information Act request, KEI has obtained records relating to US Trade Representative Ambassador Robert Lighthizer’s attendance at the 2018 World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland. While many of the records were related to scheduling and re-scheduling… Continue Reading

UNDP, Unitaid, and WHO caught in Big Pharma’s crosshairs

PhRMA’s Special 301 submissions are part of a yearly ritual to shape the “Special 301” Report, an annual review of the global state of intellectual property rights (IPR) protection and enforcement, conducted by the Office of the United States Trade… Continue Reading

WTO panel finds 2001 Doha Declaration on the TRIPS Agreement and Public Health is an agreement between members

The panel in a WTO dispute regarding Australia and plain packaging of tobacco products reached the conclusion that 2001 Doha Declaration on the TRIPS Agreement and Public Health has the status of an agreement that has modified the interpretation of… Continue Reading

WTO TRIPS Council (February 2018): South Africa’s statement on the regulatory review exception

On Tuesday, 27 February 2018, the representative of the Republic of South Africa delivered the following statement at the World Trade Organization’s TRIPS Council; South Africa delivered this statement under the agenda item on IP and the Public Interest: Regulatory… Continue Reading

Trade Policy Reviews

KEI page on the World Trade Organization’s (WTO) Trade Policy Reviews All members of the WTO are subject to review under the Trade Policy Review Mechanism (TPRM). The TPRM takes place in the “Trade Policy Review Body which is actually… Continue Reading

October 2017: Dueling narratives on compulsory licensing emerge from the WTO TRIPS Council

The October 2017 meeting of the WTO TRIPS Council witnessed heated discussions on compulsory licensing within the context of IP and the Public Interest. As reported earlier by Knowledge Ecology International, on 31 May 2017, Brazil, China, Fiji, India, and… Continue Reading

Asia, compulsory licensing

India 2010 2010: India’s intervention to the WTO TRIPS Council: TRIPS plus enforcement trends, 2010-06-10 2011 2011: Karl De Gucht writes Andris Piebalgs on topic of European Union IPR demands on India and other developing countries, 2011-05-28 2011: WTO TRIPS… Continue Reading