WTO: US and Argentina settle dispute over patents and data protection

In May 2000, supplementing an earlier complaint filed in May 1999, the US filed a complaint against Argentina, alleging that its patent laws violate the World Trade Organization's Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property (the TRIPS Agreement). The gist of the US complaint was that Argentina's law failed to provide: (1) adequate protection against "unfair" commercial use of undisclosed test data submitted in order to get market approval of pharmaceutical products; (2) certain safeguards for compulsory licences on an invention granted on the basis of inadequate working by the patent holder; and (3) adequate measures to prevent infringements of patent rights. The US also alleged that Argentina denies certain exclusive rights of patent holders, such as the exclusive right to import the patented product into the country. At the end of May 2002, the US and Argentina notified the WTO that they had reached a "mutually agreed solution," without prejudice to their respective rights and obligations under WTO agreements, and the US has withdrawn its complaint.     

Managing generic competition and patent strategies in the pharmaceutical industry

Legal context: The income streams of originating pharmaceutical manufacturersare under pressure as never before, from increasing R&Dcosts, regulatory pressures, and competition from generic manufacturers.This article examines the various strategies which originatingpharmaceutical manufacturers have adopted in response to thesethreats. Key points: The authors consider various strategies, including SupplementaryProtection Certificates, life-cycle management (‘evergreening’),second pharmaceutical use claims, trade marks, and the use ofdata exclusivity and interim injunctions, in order to prolongthe protection given to existing products, and to manage competitionfrom generic manufacturers. Practical significance: The authors also include two real-life case studies in orderto illustrate the practical applications of the strategies discussedin the article.     

Response to Tudor: Remorse-based Sentence Reductions in Theory and Practice

Steven Tudor defends the mitigation of criminal sentences in cases in which offenders are genuinely remorseful for their crimes. More than this, he takes the principle that such remorse-based sentence reductions are appropriate to be a ‘well-settled legal principle’—so well settled, in fact, that ‘it is among those deep-seated commitments which can serve to test general theories as much as they are tested by them’. However, his account of why remorse should reduce punishment is strongly philosophical in character. He sets to one side the many practical difficulties in implementing such reductions in the real world of criminal justice institutions so that he can focus on the question of whether a plausible account of sentencing can show that remorse should mitigate punishment. I contend that Tudor’s defense of such reductions is unpersuasive in certain respects. Yet even if it can be made more persuasive, I argue that the conditions that would have to be satisfied for remorse-based sentence reductions to be justifiably implemented are so many and various that they would likely exceed our abilities to responsibly grant them in real world legal contexts. I therefore claim that Tudor has failed to provide a defense of the ‘remorse principle’ that serves to explain or justify existing legal practices.

DNA typing in populations of mule deer for forensic use in the Province of Alberta

The present study involves the development of forensic DNA typing tests and databases for mule deer in the Province of Alberta. Two multiplex PCR reactions interrogating 10 loci were used to analyze samples from three populations of mule deer. Additionally, an amelogenin based sex-typing marker was used to determine the gender of samples. Results show that the tests and databases are appropriate for use in forensic applications. Additionally, the results indicate that there is little population structure in mule deer in Alberta and that no changes to management of this game species are suggested.     

Absurd Asymmetry – a Comment on R v Cottrell and Fletcher1 and BM,KK and DP (Petitioners) v Scottish Criminal Cases Review Commission2

This note examines two cases in which English and Scottish courts have insisted that the English and Scottish Criminal Cases Review Commissions adopt the same definition and approach as them to alleged ‘miscarriages of justice’ in order to reduce the number of potential referrals and increase finality, and to reduce the challenge posed by these Commissions to the courts' authority in the legal sphere. The authors consider whether the courts' approach is either necessary or appropriate.     

Effektiver Rechtsschutz im Umweltrecht?

Ohne Zusammenfassung     

<Emphasis Type="Italic">Commentary</Emphasis>: A Critical Review of Published Competency-to-Confess Measures

The development of standardized assessments for competency-to-confess evaluations has remained largely neglected for the last several decades. Groundbreaking research was conducted on Miranda waivers during the late 1970s, but researchers have failed to sustain programmatic research. This critical review focuses on four published Miranda measures (Comprehension of Miranda Rights, Comprehension of Miranda Rights-Recognition, Comprehension of Miranda Vocabulary, and Function of Rights in Interrogation). When evaluated by contemporary standards, the validation of these measures is very limited. Major improvements are needed for interrater reliability, test–retest reliability, content validity, construct validity, and criterion-related validity.     

Litigation and the medical indemnity crisis

The medical indemnity crisis in Australia forced doctors, lawyers and insurers to re-appraise the way they handle claims for compensation for medical error. This article examines some of the new approaches available in Australia when patients claim compensation from their doctors.