Swaraj Paul Barooah

The Public Interest Defence, and the Public Interest Offence – What Is The Way Forward In This Pandemic?

by Swaraj Paul Barooah September 30, 2020

[This post was co-authored by Varsha Jhavar and myself. Varsha is a 5th year student at Hidayatullah National Law University, Raipur. She recently won the second prize for 1st Shamnad Basheer Essay Competition on IP Law that was conducted by us earlier this year. She has also guest blogged for us earlier here.] On December 24th, 2019, the Delhi High Court had granted an ad-interim injunction in favour of Bristol Myers Squibb Holdings Ireland (BMS) for the infringement of patent number 247381 associated with…

Patent

Interim Injunctions: What’s The Damage? – Part II

by Swaraj Paul Barooah September 8, 2020

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Meme with a pic of James Bond, and the caption saying "Name's Bond... Security Bond"

[This post was co-authored with Praharsh Gour. This is part II of our two-part post on interim injunctions. You can view Part I here.] In our previous post, we summarized some of the many issues with interim injunctions in high-tech patent matters. We also pointed to an earlier suggestion of doing away with the interim phase altogether. We highlighted that aside from the possible pro-patentee bias in the grant, there is also the issue of public interest perhaps not being…

Patent

Interim Injunctions: What’s the Damage? – A Summary

by Swaraj Paul Barooah September 2, 2020

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Oprah meme, with text "You get an interim, you get an interim, everyone gets an interim!"

[This post has been co-authored with Praharsh Gour. His previous posts can be found here.] India’s tryst with interim injunctions in high tech patent disputes is a long, problematic one, as covered several times in this blog. Despite all the issues pointed out, and despite courts stating that it should be used judiciously, it probably surprises few observers to see it being used too frequently. Over the course of this two part post, we will first try to provide an…

COVID-19 Drug Regulation Patent

Nationalism, Drugs and Public Interest – Remdesivir and Beyond

by Swaraj Paul Barooah July 4, 2020

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A few days ago, the US Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) announced that their President has struck an ‘amazing deal’ with Gilead, that ensured nearly all of Gilead’s projected production of Remdesivir for the next three months are secured by the US. “Nearly all” in this case, refers to 100% of Gilead’s projected production of Remdesivir for July, and 90% of the projected production for August and September. This is after US has already kept about 60% (940,000)…

Open Access IP Textbooks – or – Mythical IP Books and Where to Find Them

by Swaraj Paul Barooah June 29, 2020

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Image showing various 'Open' related logos, with text "IP Textbooks. It's always Open Access O'Clock. Download and Enjoy"

Despite the high educational value that exists when tomes of writing are dedicated to very specific areas, textbooks are often no longer treated like the powerhouses of knowledge that they were once known to be. Especially given the plethora of other mediums over which that knowledge is now available – journal articles, niche websites, blogs, podcasts, online forums, social media, etc. The reasons for this are of course varied. In a fast evolving field like intellectual property, classic textbooks may…

Comparative Advertising COVID-19 Trademark

To Mock the Corona Word: Disparaging During the Time of Crisis

by Swaraj Paul Barooah June 28, 2020

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a “Corona Extra'' labelled bottle is in the middle of eight circumscribing small bottles of another product, with arrows emitting from the Corona Extra labelled bottle and words “Stay home” inscribed below. In fact, in the ‘advertisement’, the defendants products are not even distinguishable as belonging to the defendant.

[This post has been co-authored with Praharsh Gour. Praharsh is a graduate from Hidayatullah National Law University, Raipur and is presently an LL.M. candidate at the Faculty of Legal Studies, South Asian University, New Delhi] You know you are in for a roller-coaster ride when the name of your 95 year old brand resembles the ongoing pandemic. The recent Covid-19 outbreak has perhaps left the famous beer brand ‘Corona’ swinging like a pendulum between two wildly varying image issues. On…

Patent

Staying the Post-Grant Revocation of Ibrutinib

by Swaraj Paul Barooah June 18, 2020

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Pic of text saying "Should I stay or should i go"

[This post was co-authored with Praharsh Gour. Praharsh is a graduate from Hidayatullah National Law University, Raipur and has previously worked with an IP firm, practicing in New Delhi. He is presently an LL.M candidate at the Faculty of Legal Studies, South Asian University, New Delhi] A recent IPAB order has resulted in a revoked patent over an anti-cancer drug Ibrutinib, being granted a curious new lease of life for the duration of on-going litigation before itself. This post will…

Innovation

Consultation Process for New Science, Technology and Innovation Policy 2020 Begins – How to Contribute?

by Swaraj Paul Barooah June 12, 2020

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The Ministry of Science and Technology recently announced the initiation of the consultation process for the new Science, Technology and Innovation Policy 2020. Notably, the consultation process which started recently, seems to be very inclusive as it is described (more on that below). For those interested, there is a virtual town hall meeting, as the launch event for public consultations, happening later today, from 6:30 pm to 8:00 pm IST – more details here. Reproducing the PIB notification: “The Office…

COVID-19 Data Exclusivity Innovation Patent

Patents for Pharmaceutical Innovation – Basic Concerns

by Swaraj Paul Barooah June 9, 2020

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Comparison of BRICS countries Public Health spending. Please contact author if you want breakdown of details

Covid 19 seems to have done what public health activists have been crying hoarse about for years – that is, shine a bright spotlight on the various inadequacies of the public health systems around the world, and its related issues. With several public calls for letting patent rights on pharmaceuticals take a back seat vis-a-vis this pandemic, this bright spotlight has also shone on those who’ve been lobbying for ever-restrictive patent rights on pharmaceuticals. For example, as KEI has pointed…

Malobika Sen { Very informative piece. This effort by Justice Singh is truly remarkable! }
{ Justice Prathiba Singh is a trailblazer. We need more of this. We have some brilliant IP academics in India and students turning towards academia. This is extremely motivating-... }
Akshat { At the prima facie stage, even if the documents are on record- without any cross examination, the veracity of any document cannot be made out. In any case,... }
Bhidu { "At the prima facie stage, where evidence ought not to be produced by parties, the reasoning given by the Single Judge requiring Defendant to show “material” in support... }
Swaraj Paul Barooah { Thanks for your kind words Neha! }