Law Commons^™

Multipolarity, Intellectual Property And The Internationalization Of Public Health Law, Sam Halabi

Sam Halabi

This Article critically examines the proliferation of international legal agreements addressing global health threats like the outbreak of infectious diseases, tobacco use and lack of access to affordable medicines. The conventional wisdom behind this trend is that a global normative shift has occurred which has caused states to regard health as “special” and less subject to the normal rules of international law making because health threats endanger all of humanity. This Article challenges that thesis, arguing that at the same time the number and scope of international health law treaties has grown, developed states have subordinated health law to intellectual …

Hiv And Aids In Africa: Compulsory Licensing Under Trips And Doha Declaration, Ufuoma Barbara Akpotaire

Ufuoma Barbara Akpotaire

In today’s world, there is a lot of focus on issues such as militancy, global warming, terrorism, racism and even politics. Unfortunately, there is a problem that has killed and is still killing far more people than any of the above issues. That problem is HIV/AIDS.

AIDS is a serious medical condition that predisposes patients towards opportunistic infecting tumors, dementia and death. HIV is the viral agent associated with AIDS. Africa is without doubt more heavily affected by HIV/AIDS than any other region of the world. Although Nigeria’s HIV/AIDS prevalence rate is still relatively low compared to some countries in …

The Copenhagen Accord And Climate Innovation Centres, Matthew Rimmer

Matthew Rimmer

After much hue and cry, the Copenhagen negotiations over intellectual property and climate change ended in a stalemate and an impasse. There was a gulf between the views of intellectual property maximalists who demanded strong protection of intellectual property rights in respect of clean technologies; and nation states and civil society groups calling for special measures to facilitate technology transfer. As a result, the Copenhagen Accord did contain any text on intellectual property and climate change. Nonetheless, the Copenhagen Accord does, though, contain an important compromise. The text provides for a technology mechanism, which envisages a network of Climate Innovation …

Ip Policy Void In The 'Grand Climate Bargain', Matthew Rimmer

Matthew Rimmer

In September, Prime Minister Kevin Rudd emphasized the need for national and global action on climate change and called for “a grand bargain” between “the developed world and the developing world in order to reach an outcome for the planet earth as a whole”.No doubt, action on climate change will need new technology, which most likely will be predominately developed in a few, innovative countries. It is also clear, however, that if this ‘grand bargain’ is to be more than a wistful hope we need appropriate intellectual property rights in place for these new technological developments.The chairs of the Ad …

A Submission To The Senate Community Affairs Committee Inquiry Into Gene Patents, Matthew Rimmer

Matthew Rimmer

I am a senior lecturer and the associate director for research at the Australian National University College of Law based in Canberra, Australia. I am also an associate director of the Australian Centre for Intellectual Property in Agriculture (ACIPA). I have a BA (Hons) and a University Medal in literature, and a LLB (Hons) from the Australian National University, and a PhD in law from the University of New South Wales. I am a member of the Copyright and Intellectual Property Advisory Group of the Australian Library and Information Association, and a director of the Australian Digital Alliance. I am …