In this week's post, we see as hopes of a vaccine for the coronavirus seem to be closer to reality, many health and legal experts have raised concerns about how distribution will occur if the vaccines are patented. 

Plus, an overview of domestic vs. international contracts for the sale of goods.

Fears Arise as Vaccines for COVID-19 May Be Patentable

As most experts in the field know, patenting vaccines is not unusual and is why pharmaceuticals remain one of the most intellectual property heavy fields professionally.  But as the pandemic continues to spread across the globe, health officials have begun to question whether COVID-19 vaccine patents will be troublesome. 

Lawyers around the world have already begun anticipating the potential for an increase in litigation as well as governmental intervention if vaccine makers and distributors cannot come to an agreement of how ownership rights will be protected.  And with the addition of international health authorities, legal experts expect that there can be significant difficulty with widespread distribution of a vaccine without careful planning, infrastructure, and oversight.   

In preparation for the potential for increased patent litigation, some countries are trying to head off the conflict by announcing that they will require that vaccine patent licenses be granted and compulsory once manufactured.  Other countries have also asked the World Health Organization to lead organizational efforts and broker agreements that will require countries to cooperate, share information, and agree to nonexclusive vaccine patent licenses.  Many experts worry, however, that countries that are not a part of the World Health Organization may lose out on access to COVID-19 vaccines or may not be able to share pertinent information relevant to finding a cure or vaccine. 

Read the full article here.

A Look at Domestic Versus International Contracts for the Sale of Goods

In the modern global economy, most U.S. companies are aware of the savings and opportunities available by sourcing or exporting products outside the United States. Of course, these opportunities often involve additional risks, as well. Although companies can take a number of precautions to limit their risks in international transactions, the primary legal tool for such purposes is the sales contract.

In the world of transactional law, unpredictability and ambiguity are dirty words. When a contract fails to clearly address a given situation and a dispute arises, it often takes a judge or jury to determine the correct result. Most companies would prefer to know what their rights and obligations are in a contract, rather than leave such decisions to a judge or jury. As such, transactional lawyers go to great pains to try to eliminate unpredictability and ambiguity — a task made more difficult when the parties to a contract are from different countries.

A good international contract for the sale of goods is, in most respects, quite similar to a good domestic contract. However, because of differences in legal jurisdictions and practical issues related to enforcing contracts across national borders, a number of provisions standard to many domestic sales contracts gain special importance in an international transaction.

Read about the provisions here.

Click to read the previous Weekly IP Buzz on Thriving Attorney.

For more posts, see our Intellectual Property Law Blog.

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In addition to Thriving Attorney, Darin M. Klemchuk is founder of Klemchuk LLP, a litigation, intellectual property, and transactional law firm located in Dallas, Texas. Click to read more about Darin Klemchuk's practice as an intellectual property lawyer.