Members Still Debating Changes To Oversight At WIPO 10/10/2016 by William New, Intellectual Property Watch 1 Comment Stung by what some saw as a botched process for handling allegations from senior officials about the head of the World Intellectual Property Organization, WIPO members are working this week to agree on changes to procedures. A new draft text circulated this morning introduces additional responsibility for governments in the process, and is under discussion today. At press time, ambassadors from the African Group were meeting and asked to hold up the process until internal agreement could be reached on the text. The plenary is scheduled to reconvene at four o’clock today.
Gurry Off The Hook, Investigation Ends, WIPO Says 07/10/2016 by William New, Intellectual Property Watch 1 Comment The member governments of the UN World Intellectual Property Organization, after considering a confidential UN investigation report on whistleblower charges against WIPO Director General Francis Gurry, have decided to end the case without discipline, WIPO has said. Instead, members are working to bolster whistleblower protections, internal oversight and procurement procedures at the agency for the future.
WIPO Members Work To Toughen Up Procedures For Investigations Of High-Level Officials 07/10/2016 by William New, Intellectual Property Watch 1 Comment Member governments of the UN World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) are working intensively in a closed-door session today to make changes to the way allegations of wrongdoing against high-ranking WIPO officials are handled. What is not clear from the secretive discussions is whether any action will be taken against the director general as a result of a UN investigation of his activities, for which the UN report is on the meeting agenda.
External Offices, WIPO Normative Work At Heart Of General Assemblies 03/10/2016 by Catherine Saez, Intellectual Property Watch 1 Comment The decision-making bodies of the World Intellectual Property Organization are meeting this week with the hope of advancing discussions of pending potential treaties to protect broadcasting organisations, and simplifying the international applications for industrial designs. Meanwhile, Director General Francis Gurry opened the annual WIPO General Assemblies with a look at the past year and challenges for the future.
Panel At WTO Discusses Competition Policy And Why It Matters To Trade 02/10/2016 by Alexandra Nightingale for Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment Competition policy has evolved along with globalization and trade in past years. Now there are challenges such as the growth in international trade transactions and rapidly increasing cross-border mergers and antitrust cases. In parallel, the proliferation of competition policies and system has created potential of conflict of jurisdiction. Experts on competition and trade policies came together during the World Trade Organization Public Forum last week to discuss what the WTO can do and how better coordination between the competition policy and trade policy can be achieved to support growth and inclusiveness.
Clinical Trial Reporting Biased; Full Disclosure, Transparency Needed, Speakers Say 30/09/2016 by Catherine Saez, Intellectual Property Watch 2 Comments A conference on clinical drug trials held today shed a harsh light on the availability and honesty of clinical trial reports. Many factors concur to possible distortion of results, speakers said, calling for more stringent obligations to provide all data for analysis. They also noted legislative efforts to tackle the issue. Speakers also pointed out a growing trend for pharmaceutical companies to conduct clinical trials in developing countries.
Gurry Speaks On Allegations For First Time As WIPO Members Discuss Actions 30/09/2016 by William New, Intellectual Property Watch 5 Comments Heading into next week’s annual UN World Intellectual Property Organization General Assemblies, WIPO member states are considering a report from the United Nations investigations office regarding allegations of wrongdoing made involving WIPO Director General Francis Gurry. And for first time since the allegations arose, Gurry has offered his defence. Spoiler alert: he neither confirmed nor denied it but raised questions about the legality of sharing the report with member states.
Developing Countries Should Be Able To Shield Their Markets From Cheap Food Imports, Panel Says 30/09/2016 by Catherine Saez, Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment In the temple of international trade and globalisation, a group of speakers called for developing countries to protect themselves against dumping of food products from developed countries.
Voluntary Sustainability Standards: Virtue Enhancers Or Trade Discriminatory? 30/09/2016 by Catherine Saez, Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment Voluntary standards are seen by some as acting as barriers to trade, in particular for developing countries unable to meet the requirements of those private standards. At the World Trade Organization Public Forum, two panels presented two approaches, one looking at governments’ role in voluntary sustainability standards, and launching a report by a multi-agency United Nations initiative on those standards. The other one focused on the challenges private standards can represent for developing countries.
Signs Of Changing Trends In FTAs’ IP Chapters, Speakers Say At WTO 29/09/2016 by Catherine Saez, Intellectual Property Watch 1 Comment Although the Trans-Pacific Partnership negotiation has raised significant concerns from civil society during negotiations, including about the intellectual property chapter, speakers on a panel during the World Trade Organization Public Forum yesterday said the agreement actually includes a positive provision on copyright, while some other free trade agreements under discussion still include stringent proposals on IP.