Civil law regulation of dependent compulsory licensing on the example of the healthcare sector
In modern conditions, the legal mechanisms of compulsory licensing are of particular relevance as an important tool for the development of domestic technologies. These institutions are designed to encourage owners of intellectual property to use it more effectively in the public and national interests. The relevance, features and problems of compulsory licensing on the claims of the right holders of dependent objects of patent protection are considered. For brevity of terminology, this type of compulsory licensing is proposed to be called “dependent compulsory licensing”. Special attention is paid to the controversial legal requirement that the plaintiff prove the importance of a technical achievement and the materiality of the economic advantages of its dependent result of intellectual activity. Based on the results of a comparative analysis, it was concluded that there is more stringent regulation in Russian civil law compared to international obligations assumed by the Russian Federation, in particular, under the Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights dated July 24, 2017. This tightening may impede further improvement and efficiency in the use of objects of patent protection. The conclusion is substantiated that the legal tools and conceptual apparatus used in pt 2 of Article 1362 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation require detailed study and clarification in order to create legal conditions for the distribution of dependent compulsory licensing in practice, in particular, in the healthcare sector.