The TRIPS Article 31 Tug of War Developing Country Compulsory Licensing of Pharmaceutical Patents and Developed Country Retaliation

Abstract

My dissertation examines compulsory licensing under Article 31 of the TRIPS Agreement by looking at the use of such licensing by developing countries, as well as retaliatory and restrictive measures imposed by developed countries. In doing so, it looks at the right to health, and price and intellectual property considerations for access to medicines in developing countries. It further explores the TRIPS compulsory licensing rules themselves to present compulsory licensing as a legitimate, and at times necessary, policy measure under international law. Then, it examines how compulsory licensing has been used and restricted since TRIPS, and how the compulsory licence relates to voluntary licensing and international free trade agreements, both of which are factors for the development of compulsory licensing strategies in developing countries.