1 February 2014Jurisdiction reportsOtto Licks

What to expect in 2014

The Brazilian IP landscape is likely to be affected by activity at the executive, legislative and judicial branches.

The year started with changes in the administration, with the announcement of Otavio Brandelli as the new commissioner for the Brazilian Patent Office (INPI). He replaces Jorge Avila, who held the position for about 10 years, but was recently labelled by the government as “pro-patent”. A career diplomat, and an advocate for the “agenda for development” that Brazil and Argentina presented at the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO), Brandelli is known for his strong views about the patent system, especially towards pharmaceutical patents.

In his first speech, Brandelli supported a bill (5.402/2013) introduced by House Representative Newton Lima suggesting severe changes to the current patent statute. Lima’s proposal, influenced by recent changes in India, aims at lowering the standards of patent protection and enforcement and raising the bar for patentability. According to the statement, Brandelli plans to organise an event at the INPI with Lima to discuss the bill.

An announcement on the INPI website also mentions Brandelli’s support for the competitiveness of local industries. The most controversial statement in Brandelli’s announcement was support for the current workflow between the INPI and Brazil’s food and drug administration (ANVISA) regarding pharmaceutical patents. Between 2008 and 2012 the INPI has undertaken all institutional procedures under the Brazilian legal system to have its relationship with ANVISA established by the highest bodies of the Brazilian administration.

However, after a resolution in favour of the INPI, politicians at the cabinet level mocked the system by means of an agreement in which the INPI was forced to drop the decision in its favour. The agreement subverts the patent system in Brazil, giving ANVISA more opportunity to deny patent protection based on political motivations.

The severe problems at the INPI were not mentioned, such as the 13 years backlog in patent examination; the lack of motivation of examiners to keep production levels compatible with other offices around the world; or the quality of paper file scanning, which hinders office efficiency. Issues with the INPI’s internal computer programs were also ignored. The agency turned down an offer made by the European Patent Office to use its computer programs free of charge but, to this date, it has not produced an alternative.

Legal reform

2014 promises to be a busy year for the legislative branch too. The possibility of reform of Brazilian copyright law will keep the committees overseeing IP working hard.

The second bill affecting the IP regime is the patent reform bill (5.402/2013). Some of the changes that the bill intends to implement are:

Already registered?

Login to your account

To request a FREE 2-week trial subscription, please signup.
NOTE - this can take up to 48hrs to be approved.

Two Weeks Free Trial

For multi-user price options, or to check if your company has an existing subscription that we can add you to for FREE, please email Adrian Tapping at atapping@newtonmedia.co.uk