India may follow Brazil Patent Law

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Economic Times: India may follow Brazil Patent Law

http://www.economictimes.com/today/08econ01.htm

Sunday Jul 08 2001 | Updated 0022 hrs IST 1352 EST

India may follow Brazil patent law

Gauri Kamath: MUMBAI

THE UNITED States’ decision to drop a suit in the

World Trade Organisation challenging a provision in

Brazil’s patent law is being interpreted by a section of the

Indian industry as the opportunity to model India’s

patent law along that of Brazil.

The US Trade Representative dropped a case late last

month challenging a provision of the Brazilian law

that says a patented innovation should be locally

manufactured within three years of the patent being

granted or else the innovation becomes subject to

compulsory licensing provisions.

[snip]

``We believe the US is getting increasingly isolated

in its fight against strict compulsory licensing.

Given the prevailing environment, it would’ve lost

the case and that would’ve set a precedent in the WTO

for other countries that are in the process of framing

their law,’’ said D G Shah, secretary general, Indian

Pharmaceutical Alliance, a lobby group of top Indian

pharmaceutical companies.

Shah added that though the “bilateral mechanism” that

USTR now talked of with Brazil to resolve the issue

would allow the US to put far more pressure on Brazil,

India could still feel free to draft strict compulsory

licensing norms.

``If the US takes India to the WTO for similar

provisions the results are not likely to be very

different,’’ said Shah.

In India, a joint parliamentary committee is in the

process of drafting recommendations to the second

amendment to the Patents Law which will introduce

product patents from 2005.

The JPC is expected to table its report in the

parliament in mid-August. The interpretation of

TRIPS keeping in mind countries’ right to provide

affordable medicines to its people has increasingly

become an area of concern for governments.

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