The Influence of the Andean Intellectual Property Regime on Access to Medicines in Latin America

Authors

Laurence R. Helfer, Duke Law SchoolFollow
Karen J. Alter

Document Type

Chapter of Book

Publication Date

2014

Keywords

rule of law, Andean Community, Andean Tribunal of Justice, ATJ, patents, pharmaceutical, medicine

Abstract

This chapter is a contribution to "Balancing Wealth and Health: Global Administrative Law and the Battle over Intellectual Property and Access to Medicines in Latin America," Rochelle Dreyfuss & César Rodríguez-Garavito, eds. Part I of the chapter explains how the repeated interactions between the Andean Tribunal of Justice (ATJ) and domestic IP agencies in the Andean Community helped to build an effective IP rule of law and to solidify pro-consumer interpretations of regional patent and trademark rules. Part II documents how ATJ judges and agency officials enabled Andean governments to resist pressure from the United States and its pharmaceutical industry to circumvent the flexibilities in regional IP rules. Part III considers the broader implications of the Andean experience for access to medicines in Latin America, drawing on examples from the national case studies in this volume.

Citation

Laurence R. Helfer & Karen J. Alter, The Influence of the Andean Intellectual Property Regime on Access to Medicines in Latin America, in "Balancing Wealth and Health: The Battle Over Intellectual Property and Access to Medicines in Latin America (Rochelle Dreyfuss & César Rodríguez-Garavito eds, 2014)