European Union
South Africa
IP Enforcement
5. Article 30 of the TRIPS Agreement allows Member countries to provide limited exceptions to the exclusive rights granted by the patent provided these exceptions do not "unreasonably conflict with a normal exploitation of the patent and do not unreasonably prejudice the legitimate interests of the patent owner". Article 4 of the South African patent law provides for an exception to a patent owner’s rights for "public purposes". Please explain how this provision is interpreted and applied in practice, and how it complies with Article 30.
See the reply to question No. 3 from the EC.