By Carlos Cavalcanti. Lawyer, Managing Partner at Moeller IP Brazil.
Last Thursday (29th of April), the Brazilian Senate approved a proposal that authorizes the Brazilian government to decree the temporary compulsory license for vaccine patents, diagnostic tests, and medicines to combat Covid-19.
In emergency situations like the current pandemic, there will be two stages in the compulsory licensing process. In the first, when the emergency situation is declared, the Executive Branch must publish, within 30 days, a list of patents related to products and processes essential to combat the pandemic.
In the second stage, licenses would be effectively granted only for patents on the priority list for which effective proposals based on objective market conditions, technological training, and investments for their production in the country would appear.
Licenses will be granted on an official basis, for a determined time, and on a non-exclusive basis, without prejudice to the rights of their respective holder.
