Juan Ignacio Correa

Contributions to Collected Editions, Commentaries, Handbooks and Encyclopaedias

La Propiedad Intelectual en Latinoamérica y su Rol en el Desarrollo Económico y Social [Intellectual Property in Latin America and its Role in Economic and Social Development], in: Marcos Wachowicz, Karin Grau-Kuntz (eds.), Estudos de Propriedade Intelectual em Homenagem ao Prof. Dr. Denis Borges Barbosa [Studies on Intellectual Property in Honor of Prof. Dr. Denis Borges Barbosa], IODA - Instituto Observatório do Direito Autoral, Curitiba 2021, 25 - 64 (together with Reto M. Hilty et al.).

• O texto trata do estabelecimento e evolução dos direitos da propriedade in-telectual na América Latina. Perpassa os contextos nos quais esses direitos foram incorporados ao arcabouço legal doméstico. Ainda que as economias latino-americanas sejam mais ou menos frágeis do ponto de vista da pro-priedade intelectual, as conclusões apontam que há diversos desafios a se-rem enfrentados, mas que os países da região têm potencial para superá-los e avançar na proteção e na utilização dos seus ativos intelectuais.
• This article deals with the establishment and evolution of intellectual property rights in Latin America. It goes through the contexts in which these rights have been in-corporated into the domestic legal framework. Although Latin American economies are more or less fragile from the point of view of intellectual property, the conclusions indicate that there are several challenges to be faced, but that the countries of the region have the potential to overcome them and advance in the protection and use of their intellectual assets.
• https://codaip.gedai.com.br/wp-content/uploads/2021/11/1_Estudos-de-Propriedade-Intelectual-em-homenagem-ao-Prof_Dr_Denis-Borges-Barbosa.pdf

Propiedad Intelectual en el Sector de las Semillas Bajo la Óptica de las Normas de Competencia en Latinoamérica, in: Ernesto Rengifo García, Francisco Beneke (eds.), Los Derechos de Propiedad Intelectual y Libre Competencia, Siglo del Hombre Editores, Bogotá 2021, 467 - 517.

Impacto del Tratado de Cooperación de Patentes en Latinoamérica en Propiedad Intelectual, Sociedad y Desarrollo - Reflexiones desde Latinoamérica, in: María Sol Terlizzi, Marcos Wachowicz (eds.), Propiedad Intelectual, Sociedad y Desarrollo: Reflexiones desde Latinoamérica, GEDAI-UFPR, Curitiba 2020, 143 - 167.

• https://dl.airtable.com/.attachments/332e91d9a7f79d509e21ece0f5586386/91d8b8d1/Propiedadintelectual-FlacsoGedai-Ebook.pdf

20 años de la OMC: la instrumentación del acuerdo sobre los aspectos de los derechos de propiedad intelectual relacionados con el comercio de América Latina, in: Valentina Delich, Dorotea López, Felipe Muñoz (eds.), 20 años de la OMC: una perspectiva desde Latinoamerica, FLASCO. Sede Académica Argentina, Programa de Catedras OMC, Universidad de de Chile, Buenos Aires 2016, 239 - 305 (together with Carlos M. Correa).

Parallel Imports and the Principle of Exhaustion of Rights in Latin America, in: Irene Calboli, Edward Lee (eds.), Research Handbook on Intellectual Property Exhaustion and Parallel Imports (Research Handbooks in Intellectual Property Series), Edward Elgar, Cheltenham, UK; Northampton, MA 2016, 198 - 225 (together with Carlos M. Correa).

Journal Articles

Revisiting the Framework for Compulsory Licensing of Patents in the European Union – Reflections on the European Commission’s Initiative, GRUR Int 72, 5 (2023), 471 - 482 (together with Matthias Lamping et al.). DOI

• Within the scope of its initiative on ‘Compulsory Licensing in the EU’,8 the European Commission launched a call for evidence on 1 April 2022 and a public consultation on 7 July 2022 with the aim of gathering views from stakeholders. The objective of this initiative is to explore the possibility of revising the framework for compulsory licensing in the EU to make it more ‘adequately prepared and coordinated to tackle future crises’.9 The authors of this position paper welcome the Commission’s attempt to reinvigorate the public discourse on this important subject.
  
  Depending on the issue to be addressed and the extent of the Commission’s willingness to reform, different regulatory approaches are conceivable. Subject to compatibility with the principles of subsidiarity and proportionality, these include:
  
  Rather than making concrete recommendations on the regulatory approach, this paper addresses selected aspects by way of a preliminary, non-exhaustive note on: the proposed reform’s scope and the grounds for a compulsory licence; the requirements of prior negotiation and licensing failure; government use; procedural matters; compulsory licences for patent applications and products; the relation with other regulations and sui generis regimes (i.e. trade secret protection, regulatory data protection and supplementary protection certificates); the concept of adequate remuneration; compulsory licences for European patents with unitary effect; and the exhaustion of products placed on the market under a compulsory licence.
  
  – soft law measures, such as guidelines and recommendations;
  
  – harmonisation of national laws (substantive and/or procedural);10
  
  – judicial cooperation (i.e. mutual recognition of judgments and of decisions in extrajudicial cases);11
  
  – centralisation of granting and/or judicial review competences;
  
  – creation of a supranational compulsory licence;
  
  – or any combination thereof.

Impact of the Patent Cooperation Treaty in Latin America, GRUR Int 69, 8 (2020), 803 - 822 (together with Carlos M. Correa). DOI

• This study shows that the main beneficiaries of the Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT) in three Latin American countries, which adhered to it as a result of the obligations provided for in free trade agreements, have been non-residents rather than local companies and individual inventors. This rebuts the frequently made argument that acceding to the PCT would generate incentives for local innovation and benefit local inventors by boosting their capacity to protect their developments in third countries. In the three countries considered in this study, the number of patents granted increased after accession to the treaty. This points to the risk of an erosion of the countries’ flexibilities in designing and implementing patent policies, as allowed by the TRIPS Agreement, with respect to the standards applied to assess eligibility for patent protection.

The Status of Patenting Plants in the Global South, The Journal of World Intellectual Property 23, 1-2 (2020), 121 - 146 (together with Carlos M. Correa, Bram De Jonge). DOI

• Over the last few decades, the number of patents on plants and plant parts has greatly increased in various parts of the world. Most research, however, has focused exclusively on developed countries—the United States and European Union states in particular—while little is known about the extent to which plants are being patented in other parts of the world. This article aims to fill this information gap by providing an overview of the status of patenting plants in the developing countries and emerging economies of the Global South. The research is based on the analysis of legal provisions, patentability guidelines, court decisions (where they exist) and a sample of patents granted in the countries selected for this study. The findings indicate that despite the flexibilities of the World Trade Organization Trade‐Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights Agreement regarding the nonpatentability of plants, 60% of the 126 countries in the Global South for which data were available to allow for the patenting of plants or parts thereof, and many such patents have been identified. This situation warrants further reflection and, potentially, review of existing patent laws as developing countries search for ways of responding optimally to the needs of feeding a growing population while adapting to the challenges of climate change.

Case notes

Legal Standing to Sue for Revocation of a Trade Mark for Lack of Use - Case Note to Supreme Court (Tribunal Supremo), Decision of 8 May 2019 – 4074/2016, GRUR Int 69, 3 (2020), 308 - 315. DOI

Research Papers

International Technology Transfer Regimes in Latin America (Max Planck Institute for Innovation & Competition Research Paper, No. 24-07), 2024, 121 pp. (together with Francisco Beneke Ávila). DOI

• The present study covers regulation and public policy aimed at promoting international technology transfer in Latin America, focusing on eight countries: Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Mexico, Peru, Uruguay and Venezuela. The first part of this comparative study analyses national regulations on technology transfer, whether they incorporate definitions or whether there are specific incentives to encourage international technology transfer between countries. It also examines whether the different jurisdictions establish registration conditions for this type of contract. The second part analyses the contractual regulation from a civil, commercial, and antitrust law perspective. In particular, this study com-pares each country’s approach to regulate restrictive clauses that may hinder the dissemination of technology. Lastly, the study covers international agreements on technology transfer.

Intellectual Property And Transformative Constitutionalism (Max Planck Institute for Innovation & Competition Research Paper, No. 24-06), 2024, 32 pp. (together with Reto M. Hilty).

• This chapter examines the tensions between intellectual property protection, on the one hand, and economic, social, and cultural rights, on the other. From that perspective, the text is based on the concrete legislative implementation of those constitutional goals, as well as the relevant jurisprudence, including decisions taken at the supranational level according to international treaties on human rights. It also discusses the effect of the strengthening of intellectual property rules through free trade or investment agreements and how this affected the fulfilment of constitutional objectives. Finally, it introduces how national courts have interpreted intellectual property rules concerning constitutionally guaranteed social rights as well as some policy options to deal with those tensions and avoid adverse impacts of intellectual property regimes in Latin American countries.
• Available at SSRN

Aplicación de la Decisión Ministerial de la OMC sobre Patentes Relacionadas a Vacunas contra el COVID-19 (Application of the Ministerial Decision of the WHO on Patents Related to COVID-19 Vaccines), Policy Paper, 2022, 11 pp. (together with Pedro Henrique D. Batista).

• https://sipla.ip.mpg.de/fileadmin/Files/Publications/Aplicacion_de_la_Decision_Ministerial.pdf

Implementación de las Flexibilidades del Sistema de Patentes en Países Seleccionados de Latinoamérica. Estudio Comparativo, Smart IP for Latin America (SIPLA) 2021, 158 pp. (together with Matthias Lamping).

• El presente estudio comparativo está enmarcado en el Proyecto de Investigación de la Iniciativa Smart IP del Instituto Max Planck ‘Flexibilidades del Sistema de Patentes’. Los Estados soberanos deberían conservar la facultad discrecional de adoptar un sistema de patentes que se adapte mejor a sus capacidades tecnológicas, así como a sus necesidades y prioridades sociales, culturales y económicas, con la salvedad de que el ejercicio de esa facultad discrecional debe mantenerse dentro de los límites del derecho internacional. El objetivo del proyecto "Flexibilidades en materia de patentes" es analizar la forma en que los Estados de América Latina aprovechan el espacio de políticas que el derecho internacional, en particular el "Acuerdo sobre los Aspectos de los Derechos de Propiedad Intelectual relacionados con el Comercio" (Acuerdo sobre los ADPIC), les deja con respecto a la aplicación y administración de sus sistemas de patentes.
• https://sipla.ip.mpg.de/es/publicaciones/detalles/implementacion-de-las-flexibilidades-del-sistema-de-patentes-en-paises-seleccionados-de-latinoamerica.html

Intellectual Property in the EU–MERCOSUR FTA: A Brief Review of the Negotiating Outcomes of a Long-Awaited Agreement (Research Paper / South Centre, 128), South Centre, Geneva 2021, 44 pp. (together with Roxana Carmen Blasetti).

• This paper provides a first glance at the Intellectual Property Chapter of the Free Trade Agreement (FTA) between the Southern Common Market (MERCOSUR) and the European Union (EU). It is not intended to provide an exhaustive analysis of the commitments involved but rather to briefly review the scope of intellectual property in the bi-regional negotiations, which took more than 20 years and ended in June 2019 with an “agreement in principle.” It also aims to put the Chapter into context with the whole commitments covered by the FTA and, finally, to highlight its most relevant aspects.
• Este documento ofrece un primer vistazo al capítulo sobre propiedad intelectual del Tratado de Libre Comercio (TLC) entre el Mercado Común del Sur (MERCOSUR) y la Unión Europea (UE). No se pretende hacer un análisis exhaustivo de los compromisos implicados, sino más bienrevisar brevemente el alcance de la propiedad intelectual en las negociaciones birregionales, que duraron más de 20 años y terminaron en junio de 2019 con un "acuerdo de principio". También tiene por objeto situar el capítulo en el contexto de todos los compromisos cubiertos por el TLC y, por último, poner de relieve sus aspectos más relevantes.
• Ce document donne un premier aperçu du chapitre sur la propriété intellectuelle de l'accord de libre-échange (ALE) entre le Marché commun du Sud (MERCOSUR) et l'Union européenne (UE). Il n'a pas pour but de fournir une analyse exhaustive des engagements impliqués, mais plutôt de revoir brièvement la portée de la propriété intellectuelle dans les négociations bi-régionales, qui ont duré plus de 20 ans et qui se sont terminées en juin 2019 par un "accord de principe". Il vise également à mettre ce chapitre en contexte avec l'ensemble des engagements couverts par l'ALE et, enfin, à mettre en évidence ses aspects les plus pertinents.
• https://www.southcentre.int/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/RP-128.pdf

Breeder's Exemption in Patent Law: Towards a TRIPS Compliant Exemption (WIPO Academy, University of Turin and ITC-ILO - Master of Laws in IP - Research Papers Collection, 2017-2018), 2019, 31 pp.

• This paper will discuss the incorporation of a breeder’s exemption into patent law. The main question to be addressed is whether such an exemption, as found in plant variety protection regimes, would create an appropriate balance between the patent right holder’s interest and the public interest and whether it would be compatible with the TRIPS disciplines. Section II examines how the breeder’s exemption is provided under the UPOV Convention and in some jurisdictions (with the examples of US, Europe, Ecuador), while section III analyses the compatibility of two different versions of that exemption with the TRIPS Agreement.
• Available at SSRN

The Status of Patenting Plants in the Global South, Position Statement and Research Report, Oxfam Novib, The Hague 2018, 62 pp. (together with Carlos M. Correa).

• Over the last few decades, the number of patents on plants and plant parts has greatly increased in various parts of the world. This has triggered social debate about possible negative consequences for the breeding sector, farmers and society. Despite the urgency of these questions, most research and literature has focused exclusively on developed countries – the USA and European Union, in particular – while little is known about the extent to which plants are being patented in other parts of the world. This research report, conducted and written by Prof. Carlos M. Correa, aims to fill this information gap by providing an overview of the status of patenting plants in the developing countries and emerging economies of the Global South.
  
  With this research, Oxfam aims to contribute to awareness and understanding of the current status of patenting of plants in developing countries and emerging economies, to inform societal discussion and decision-making. The findings of this research – plus inputs from stakeholders during a workshop on global trends in patenting of seeds that took place in The Hague in October 2018 – informed the Oxfam Position Statement on the Patenting of Plants, that precedes the Report.
  
• https://oxfam.box.com/s/f5l0b0wtcko2ifeksm9xuaso4dhbpg9r

Opinions

Revisiting the Framework for Compulsory Licensing of Patents in the European Union, 2023, 27 pp. (together with Matthias Lamping et al.).

• Within the scope of its initiative on “Compulsory Licensing in the EU”, the European Commission launched a call for evidence on 1 April 2022 and a public consultation on 7 July 2022 with the aim of gathering views from stakeholders. The objective of this initiative is to explore the possibility of revising the framework for compulsory licensing in the EU to make it more “adequately prepared and coordinated to tackle future crises”. The authors of this position paper welcome the Commission’s attempt to reinvigorate the public discourse on this important subject. This paper addresses selected aspects by way of a preliminary, non-exhaustive note on: the proposed reform’s scope and the grounds for a compulsory licence; the requirements of prior negotiation and licensing failure; government use; procedural matters; compulsory licences for patent applications and products; the relation with other regulations and sui generis regimes (i.e. trade secret protection, regulatory data protection, and supplementary protection certificates); the concept of adequate remuneration; compulsory licences for European patents with unitary effect; and the exhaustion of products placed on the market under a compulsory licence.
• Opinion published as Max Planck Institute for Innovation & Competition Research Paper No. 23-07

Position Statement of 5 July 2022 on the Decision of the WTO Ministerial Conference on the TRIPS Agreement adopted on 17 June 2022, 2022, 8 pp. (together with Reto M. Hilty et al.).

• On 17 June 2022, after nearly one and a half years of intense debate concerning the proposal to waive IP protection in view of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Ministerial Conference of the World Trade Organization adopted a decision on the TRIPS Agreement. It has not waived any intellectual property rights as such but instead mainly clarified the application of the existing TRIPS flexibilities, in particular, regarding compulsory licensing of patents. The Position Statement shows that the Ministerial Decision makes no substantive difference in the existing international legal framework, except for lifting the limitation on the exportation of vaccines manufactured in accordance with the Decision. To the extent that the Decision can make the application of TRIPS flexibilities more expedient, it is to be welcomed. At the same time, it is argued that such facilitating effect should not be limited to, or justified by, the exceptional circumstances of the COVID-19 pandemic. More critically, it should not be restricted to COVID-19 vaccines, of which there is currently no shortage – rather, the same level of TRIPS flexibilities should apply to all medicinal products needed to overcome the COVID-19 pandemic.
• 2022-07-05__2._Position_Statement_Covid_IP_Waiver.pdf
• Also published as: Max Planck Institute for Innovation & Competition Research Paper No. 22-14