On January 29, 2020, Bill C-4, which addresses some of the changes required under the Agreement between Canada, the U.S. and Mexico (USMCA), was introduced in the House of Commons. Amendments to the Patent Act were not introduced by Bill C-4 but are expected in the coming years as Canada must implement the USMCA requirement of patent term adjustment to compensate for Patent Office delays within 4.5 years of USMCA coming into force. USMCA originally included a requirement for each Party to provide a data protection term for biologics of at least ten years from the date of first marketing approval, which would have required Canada to extend its eight-year data protection term for biologics. However, this requirement was removed during the renegotiation of USMCA in December 2019.
For further information see our articles: A Step Towards Canadian Ratification of "NAFTA 2.1" and What the amendments to the USMCA mean for Canadian IP law.
Related Publications & Articles
-
Quebec Court finds price and revenue calculation provisions of amended PMPRB Regulations unconstitutional
The Quebec Superior Court issued its decision from a constitutional challenge to the PMPRB provisions of the Patent Act and the Regulations, including the amended Regulations.Read More -
Amendments to PMPRB Regulations will now be in force July 1, 2021
While scheduled to come into force on January 1, 2021 (see here), in recognition of the fact that the COVID-19 pandemic continues to challenge all stakeholders, the amendments to the Patented Medicine...Read More -
2020 Highlights in Canadian Life Sciences IP and Regulatory Law
In 2020, Rx IP Update reported on a number of developments in Canadian life sciences IP and regulatory law.Read More