Rethinking the Length of Patent Terms

13 Pages Posted: 14 Feb 2019 Last revised: 20 May 2019

See all articles by Simon Lester

Simon Lester

WorldTradeLaw.net, China Trade Monitor

Huan Zhu

Cato Institute

Date Written: February 4, 2019

Abstract

The current 20 year patent term set out in international trade agreements does not have a firm evidentiary basis, but rather is a mostly arbitrary product of history. At one point there was experimentation among different countries, but that has been eliminated through the uniform rules of the TRIPS Agreement. However, economists are increasingly calling lengthy patent terms into question, and recent concerns about medicine prices could provide the impetus for policy-makers to take another look at the issue. The existing domestic and international legal regime makes rethinking patent terms difficult, but in order to get innovation policies right, it is important to think carefully about the foundations of the patent regime.

Keywords: Patent Terms, International Law, Patents

Suggested Citation

Lester, Simon and Zhu, Huan, Rethinking the Length of Patent Terms (February 4, 2019). American University International Law Review, Forthcoming, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=3328596 or http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.3328596

Simon Lester (Contact Author)

WorldTradeLaw.net, China Trade Monitor ( email )

VA
United States

Huan Zhu

Cato Institute ( email )

1000 Massachusetts Avenue, N.W.
Washington, DC 20001-5403
United States

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