From the University of Aberdeen:
PhD Title: Power, Money and Technology: The Relationship between TRIPS and International Investment Law
Supervisor 1 – Dr Abbe Brown
Supervisor 2 – Dr Christopher Kee
Technology has a key role in addressing the contemporary challenges of society, from health to communications to energy. These are global issues, given the location of key natural resources in developing countries, and the nature of the markets for health, communication and energy. Development and delivery of technology requires individual creativity and innovation and also significant funding. There is a growing interface between intellectual property law (a means of encouraging innovation and investment in it), and between international investment law (which will encourage and regulate the provisions of funds which will enable that technology to be developed).
TRIPS, part of the WTO agreement, purports to create a balanced system through which states must have an intellectual property system to reward innovators, and which can also seek to protect other innovators and the wider public interest. This could enable a state to require sharing of technology which could be relevant to a key challenge in a country (eg addressing climate change).
TRIPS and international investment law
If another state considers that a state's IP law is inconsistent with its obligations under TRIPS, complaints can be made under the WTO dispute resolution system. Relevant IP rights would be owned by private entities (and ultimately are often owned by investors who funded the development of the technology) and these private entities often motivate states to use the WTO dispute settlement system. Yet there is another strand - international investment law, which addresses more directly how funders might support innovation in a country.
Research focus
The relationship between TRIPS, WTO dispute settlement, sharing of technology to meet public needs and investor state arbitration is under explored. This PhD project will involve a critical analysis of the relationship between TRIPS, international investment instruments and their dispute resolution frameworks. The research will engage with primary and secondary legal sources and policy documents. Further, depending on the interest and expertise of the successful applicant, there could also be empirical research. The PhD project will develop an argument for combining issues explored by the two fields within the existing legal framework, and, if this is considered necessary, to develop a new means of balancing these competing perspectives - all to ensure a more holistic approach to investment, technology and the public interest.
