Amidst the furore over political spills and thrills, the
Intellectual Property Laws Amendment Bill 2013 was
introduced to the Australian Parliament on 30 May 2013 (view the
Bill here).
The Bill arose following recommendations in the Productivity
Commission Inquiry Report on the compulsory licensing of patents
(view the report here).
There are two key amendments, amongst others, in the Bill:
- 'Crown use' provisions
- Enforcement of the Trips Protocol
'Crown use' provisions
The Bill aims to clarify the scope for the use of 'Crown
Use' provisions in the Patents Act 1900 (Cth). As
stated by the Parliamentary Secretary for Climate Change, Industry
and Innovation, Yvette D'Ath, "Crown use is an important,
although rarely used, safeguard that allows governments to access
patented inventions to deliver critical public services."
