Author name: Shamnad Basheer

Prof. (Dr.) Shamnad Basheer founded SpicyIP in 2005. He's also the Founder of IDIA, a project to train underprivileged students for admissions to the leading law schools. He served for two years as an expert on the IP global advisory council (GAC) of the World Economic Forum (WEF). In 2015, he received the Infosys Prize in Humanities in 2015 for his work on legal education and on democratising the discourse around intellectual property law and policy. The jury was headed by Nobel laureate, Prof. Amartya Sen. Professional History: After graduating from the NLS, Bangalore Prof. Basheer joined Anand and Anand, one of India’s leading IP firms. He went on to head their telecommunication and technology practice and was rated by the IFLR as a leading technology lawyer. He left for the University of Oxford to pursue post-graduate studies, completing the BCL, MPhil and DPhil as a Wellcome Trust scholar. His first academic appointment was at the George Washington University Law School, where he served as the Frank H Marks Visiting Associate Professor of IP Law. He then relocated to India in 2008 to take up the MHRD Chaired Professorship in IP Law at WB NUJS, a leading Indian law school. Later, he was the Honorary Research Chair of IP Law at Nirma University and also a visiting professor of law at the National Law School (NLS), Bangalore. Prof. Basheer has published widely and his articles have won awards, including those instituted by ATRIP, the Stanford Technology Law Review and CREATe. He was consulted widely by the government, industry, international organisations and civil society on a variety of IP issues. He also served on several government committees.

INDIAN PATENT ACT FACES TRIPS CHALLENGE

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In a rather predictable move, Novartis has challenged the contentious Section 3(d) introduced via the 2005 Amendments to India’s Patent Act. This unique section that finds no parallel anywhere else in the world provides in pertinent part that ‘the mere discovery of a new form of a known substance which does not result in the enhancement of the known efficacy of that substance’ is not patentable. It then states (via an explanation to the section) that salts, esters, esthers, polymorphs, […]

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A ‘WIKI’ APPROACH FOR PATENT EXAMINATION

/ By / Patent

A “wiki” kind of approach is being borrowed for other spheres, including patent examinations. A simple idea, yet a brilliant one (as most inventions in patent law are). The August 21, 2006 issue of fortune reports: The problem: an epidemic of shoddy patents.The solution: Wikipedia?That’s the basic concept behind a pilot program sponsored by IBM(Charts) and other companies, which the U.S. Patent and TrademarkOffice appears poised to green-light. The project would apply anadvisory version of the wiki approach to the

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Goa seeks GI for fenny

/ By / Geographical Indication

The Hindu Reports: In its bid to try for a patent for Goan Cashew Fenni, a unique local brew, the State Government has set up study committees under the nodal agency — Patent Facilitation Centre — to unearth historical information on fenni to establish its Geographical Indicators (GI). Joint Secretary and Director of Department of Science, Technology and Environment (STE) N.P.S. Varde, who heads the nodal agency, told The Hindu that the process of getting the patent is elaborate. Nevertheless,

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Collaborative Model of Innovation

/ By / Innovation

It is interesting to see a rep from the worlds biggest patent filer (IBM) speak of open standards and a collaborative model of innovation. This FE piece states: “Given the complexity of our most pressing societal problems and the diversity of skills and resources required to solve them, innovation will increasingly require collaboration on a broader scale then ever before. Since innovation transcends the invention of new technologies— it is the application of these technologies to some useful purpose —it

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ROCHE GETS FIRST PHARMA PRODUCT PATENT IN INDIA

/ By / Patent

The Financial Times reports: The Controller General of Patents last week granted the first product patent in pharmaceuticals to Roche India Pvt Ltd, the Indian arm of Swiss drugmaker F Hoffmann La Roche, for its biotech drug Pegasys (Peinterferon apha-2a), official sources told FE. ….The company had applied for the patent under the Mailbox facility for post-1995 inventions. Pegasys, a recombinant DNA technology drug, is one of the advanced drugs in the Interferon series of proteins, which has varied end

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FIRST MAILBOX OPPOSITION (GLEEVEC) DECIDED IN INDIA

/ By / Patent

The controversial Gleevec mailbox application has been decided, and not too surprisingly the decision went against Novartis. For those unfamiliar with the concept of a mailbox application, here is a short explanation from one of my articles: “India amended her patent regime in 1999 to provide that applications claiming pharmaceutical inventions would be accepted and put away in a mailbox, to be examined in 2005–these applications are commonly referred to as ‘mailbox applications’. This amendment was in pursuance of a

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RANBAXY LOSES LIPITOR IN FINLAND

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After the US and the UK, Ranbaxy suffers another patent defeat over multibillion dollar drug Lipitor in Finland. Like the US and the UK, it will appeal here as well. Thus far, its only victory has been in Austria. The Financial Express states: In another setback to India’s biggest drugmaker Ranbaxy Laboratories Ltd, a court in Finland has prohibited it from marketing its generic version of Pfizer’s cholesterol lowering drug Lipitor in the country.The Helsinki court of appeal in Finland

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Bird Flu Hits India

/ By / Patent

One of the first posts on this blog related to Avian Flu. Little did I know that I would have to post again–as the notorious bird flu makes it way to India. As expected, it has brought with it the patent controvery as well. A news item states: “The bird flu threat has become a litmus test for the government on how it would use the patent law flexibility to cope with a public health issue that could potentially be

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CSIR and Ranbaxy among top PCT applicants

/ By / Patent

CSIR was always part of this list (taken from http://www.pharmabiz.com). Good to see that Ranbaxy features here too. It will be a while though before we catch up with South Korea which dominates here. “India stands third in the list of international patent applications filed by developing countries in 2005, and the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) and Ranbaxy Laboratories are among the top ten users of the PCT from developing countries. The top ten users of the

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More GI registrations in India

/ By / Geographical Indication

A spate of new GI registrations in India. “The Geographical Indications Registry has granted GI certificate to Bidriware from Bidar, Channapatna toys and dolls, Nanjangud banana, Coorg orange, Mysore betel leaf, Mysore rosewood inlay, Mysore traditional paintings and Mysore agarbathi, thereby enabling producers and inventors to prevent others from exploiting their products without permission.” “We have accorded certificates to these items/products. The certificate owners will be the registered proprietors of the GI concerned,” an official with the Geographical Indications Registry

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