Free Republic

Over the course of the last six months, a populist movement to weaken the rights of IP holders has swept across the country. Impacting a cross section of politically diverse states, including California, Texas, Hawaii, and Arkansas, the “right-to-repair” movement and its allies succeeded in introducing flawed legislation that would have devastated the intellectual property rights of innovators by using the levers of state government to advantage one competitor over another. Attacks on IP have become more common, yet they tug at the heart of free markets by using government power to take IP from one to give to another....

The COVID-19 pandemic has, among other things, highlighted the need for global cooperation during a public health crisis. Recognizing this need, 100 developing countries, led by South Africa and India, requested the World Trade Organization (WTO) waive provisions of the Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS) Agreement to resolve vaccine inequality. In the context of COVID-19, waiving the TRIPS Agreement could theoretically provide governments in developing countries the ability to “expedite the development, manufacturing and marketing of tests, treatments and vaccines.” Specifically, India and South Africa raised a concern that “intellectual property rights such as patents, industrial designs, copyright...