June 17, 2021
Will waiving intellectual property (IP) protections for COVID-19 vaccines, which U.S. President Joe Biden has announced support for, do more harm than good? Kobre & Kim’s Michael Rosen, who focuses on cross-border IP disputes, moderated an American Enterprise Institute panel discussing this from multiple perspectives at 9:30 am ET, June 17, 2021.
The U.S. administration announced in May that it would support waiving Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS) to enable faster and cheaper vaccine manufacturing and distribution in developing countries. However, opponents argue that the waiver will harm future innovation and damage the global IP regime without actually helping those most in need.
During the panel, “Confronting Joe Biden’s proposed TRIPS waiver for COVID-19 vaccines and treatments,” Mr. Rosen moderated a discussion that included Andrei Iancu of Irell & Manella; Burcu Kilic, the director of the Digital Rights Program at Public Citizen; Hans Sauer, deputy general counsel of the Biotechnology Industry Organization; and Lori Wallach, the director of Global Trade Watch at Public Citizen.