A treaty too many
India is learning that there is a heavy price to be paid for the large number of bilateral investment treaties, or BITs, it has signed in the …
A sham transaction by a drug firm
Pharma giant Allergan transfers contested patent to the Mohawk tribe to stop rivals from challenging it
Reinforcing the rights of nations
Drugs major Eli Lilly has lost its case against Canada. It affirms the right of a country to set its own patent laws
Acta is trade terrorism
India’s generic medicines export faces a huge threat from the anti-counterfeiting law which creates barriers to global trade
Why do we need patents?
There is no empirical evidence that patents serve to increase innovation and productivity
Prometheus bound
The denial of a patent on a medical test that correlates drug dosages with treatment could mean the end of human gene patents
Brickbats for compulsory licences
US criticises India and BRIC group for strengthening provisions on life-saving medicines
The fine line for judges
Judges have recused themselves in a number of cases but there are no clear guidelines on what constitutes conflict of interest
Pushing limits of drug access
Relying solely on gross national income to determine priorities in global health is not working any more
NCD battle starts now
The UN agreement on non-communicable diseases will get snagged on the issue of intellectual property rights for drugs
Maths of Gilead's hepatitis C drug
Why US firm's super expensive drug sofosbuvir costs so much and how it can be made at a tenth of current price
Obama takes first dip
The US becomes the first to join a global patents pool to make AIDS drugs cheaper but health workers are sceptical of the initiative
Evergreen Novartis
The Swiss pharma giant’s challenge to India’s patent law, now in the Supreme Court, may help define drug efficacy
Cipla's audacious move
Why generics maker Cipla has asked government to revoke Novartis patent on respiratory ailment drug
The natco-pfizer test
Natco’s demand for a voluntary licence from Pfizer will establish how well the compulsory licence process works in India
Finally, a US revolt on drug price
American legislators are trying to enact new laws to force the pharma industry to explain pricing of specialty drugs
Gunning for green tech
US continues to target India over its intellectual property regime, especially in pharma, green tech sectors
Choking access to drugs
Drug prices are likely to increase as rich countries and their pharma companies squeeze Indian generics out of the market. How can India’s …
Patent hypocrisies of US
American business lobbies are spreading falsehoods about India’s patent policies—and glossing over their double standards
Any cheers for Doha pact?
The Doha Declaration on protecting public health is a decade old, but developing countries have not been able to make use of TRIPs flexibilities
Drug affordability test
Natco’s bid for a compulsory licence to manufacture a Bayer anti-cancer drug is a test of the law’s ‘reasonable price’ …
Big pharma’s dirty tricks
Drug giants from GSK, Abbott and Pfizer to Bayer have been fined for serious malpractices. They should be under close watch in India
Disclosure-shy industry
Pharma and biotech firms are lobbying hard to block disclosure of origin of genetic material used in inventions, but they also raise thorny issues
Predatory EU pacts
EU is pushing India and Canada to sign free trade agreements that will hurt their generic drugs—and the outrage is global
WTO gives India a clean chit
Apex trade regulator finds nothing amiss in India's intellectual property laws after exhaustive review