Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights

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Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights

international agreement

Also known as: TRIPS

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July 16, 2026

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The Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS) is an international agreement negotiated as part of the Uruguay Round of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT). It requires all member countries of the World Trade Organization (WTO) to provide a minimum level of protection for copyrights, patents, and trademarks. This includes granting patent protection to new inventions in all fields of technology, provided they are novel, involve an inventive step, and are capable of industrial application. Countries cannot discriminate based on the place of invention, technology field, or whether products are imported or locally produced. The agreement also mandates a minimum patent term of 20 years from the filing date and requires effective procedures for enforcing intellectual property rights.12

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Adelphi Charter
Justification for IP Reform
…Washington Consensus is the 1995 Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS). TRIPS affected all levels of IP, from biotechnology to counterfeit DVDs, and pressured the developing world to import the IP standards of the United States and Europe.
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…Washington Consensus is the 1995 Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS). TRIPS affected all levels of IP, from biotechnology to counterfeit DVDs, and pressured the developing world to import the IP standards of the United States and Europe.
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Vandana Shiva
…the World Trade Organization’s (WTO’s) Trade-Related Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS) Agreement, which allowed for the patenting of life forms and would therefore make it possible for corporations to essentially require farmers to continue to purchase their seeds after local varieties had been eliminated. She spoke out against the agreement at…
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…the World Trade Organization’s (WTO’s) Trade-Related Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS) Agreement, which allowed for the patenting of life forms and would therefore make it possible for corporations to essentially require farmers to continue to purchase their seeds after local varieties had been eliminated. She spoke out against the agreement at…
Read More

intellectual-property law
The World Trade Organization and intellectual-property law
The Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (commonly known as TRIPS) has contributed greatly to the expansion of intellectual-property law. Negotiated as part of the Uruguay Round (1986–94) of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT), the TRIPS Agreement obligates members of the…
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The Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (commonly known as TRIPS) has contributed greatly to the expansion of intellectual-property law. Negotiated as part of the Uruguay Round (1986–94) of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT), the TRIPS Agreement obligates members of the…
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patent
…international harmonization has been the Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS), which was negotiated as part of the Uruguay Round (1986–94) of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade. The TRIPS Agreement requires all member countries of the World Trade Organization (WTO) to extend patent protection to…
Read More
…international harmonization has been the Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS), which was negotiated as part of the Uruguay Round (1986–94) of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade. The TRIPS Agreement requires all member countries of the World Trade Organization (WTO) to extend patent protection to…
Read More