Revisiting the patent regime of Bangladesh: compatibility with TRIPS and international best practices

Abstract

Bangladesh inherited the Patents and Designs Act, 1911, from the British and retained it for over a century with no substantial amendments. However, as a least developed country (LDC), Bangladesh will be required to comply with the Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS) Agreement after the expiry of its transitional waiver upon graduation from the LDC status in 2026.

Against this backdrop, Bangladesh has enacted a new patent law, the Bangladesh Patents Act, 2022, in an effort to make the local patent provisions responsive to the needs of innovators and consumers. This article examines the new patent law to assess its compliance with the TRIPS Agreement.

To this aim, the article compares the patent provisions of the 2022 Act with the patent regime of other developing countries, like India and Brazil, and analyses how these countries use the treaty provisions to meet the interest of intellectual property owners and users. Lastly, the article suggests some plausible solutions for Bangladesh.