Pharmaceutical research and development (R&D) has skyrocketed in recent years and is projected to reach even greater levels in the future. The total R&D spending has increased by 33 billion USD from 2005 to 2015 and is projected to rise by an additional 19 billion USD by 2020. Is there a way to cut these […]
The last day of June 2017 saw the Supreme Court of Canada (SCC) quash the controversial Promise Doctrine. The issue at hand in AstraZeneca Canada Inc v Apotex Inc was whether the Promise Doctrine should be held as the correct standard of utility under the Patent Act. The SCC’s ruling finds the Promise Doctrine unsound […]
This past November, Professor Ronald E. Pearlman from York University’s Department of Biology gave a talk [1] at Osgoode Hall Law School to discuss the potential of the innovative CRISPR genome editing system. Central to the talk was the evolving nature of genome editing technology and the ethical concerns that come with its growing breadth of […]
As ratification stutters for the Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA), the much-maligned free-trade deal between Canada and the European Union, debate continues as to whether the Canadian intellectual property (IP) regime will provide adequate protection for innovative biologic medicines in relation to subsequent-entry biologics (SEBs). Biologic medicines are complex molecules derived from living organisms […]
Patent law can be a polarizing topic, but it is especially so during international trade negotiations. Perhaps this is because the principles of patent law create fundamental conflicts between those that own patents and those that pay for patents. Despite this divide, these negotiations, along with some international diplomacy, often produce patent chapters that fall […]
The granting of a patent has often been described as a bargain [1] between the government and the patentee. In exchange for the exclusive right [2] to make, construct, use and sell their invention, the inventor will disclose the details of their discovery and, upon the patent's expiry, the invention will be made available to […]
As the new Liberal government turns its mind to the application of substantive policies, it will have to decide what to do with the Canadian orphan drug regulatory framework (ODRF) that has been in development. This framework, based in large part on the example of the United States Orphan Drug Act (US ODA), which has […]
Modern multi-lateral trade treaties do not habitually soften IP protection. The Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP), signed October 5th, is no exception. With prescription drug costs increasingly weighing on Western nations, does the TPP strike the best balance between protecting patents and incentivizing innovation?
This is an excerpt from a paper by Adam Falconi, the recipient of the 2015 Barry D. Tomo Memorial Prize for best research paper on a subject related to industrial or intellectual property law. The full paper will appear in the upcoming edition of the Intellectual Property Journal (IPJ). In September of 2014 the consolidated […]
Expiring patents are expected to contribute billions of dollars towards the loss of revenue of drug manufacturers in the years to come. To save itself from falling off the patent cliff, Big Pharma needs to restock its R&D shelves in a cost-effective manner. Aside from developing niche products like biologics and acquiring companies with promising drugs […]