Concern over plain packs

“Plain packaging is the most restrictive subset of standardized packaging,” said Paul Kilmer of Holland & Knight. “The government takes over the whole pack and dictates how—or if—the trademark can be used.”

Trevor Stevens of Davies Collison Cave outlined Australia’s experience of plain packaging rules for tobacco, introduced over one year ago. “There was considerable political mileage in taking on big tobacco. It was a win-win situation for the government.” But he questioned whether the law met the TRIPS Agreement criteria of being necessary and justifiable, given that rates of smoking were already falling in the country.

Myrtha Hurtado Rivas of Novartis Pharma explained how strict regulations require pharmaceutical companies to provide patient information on their packaging. “That trade dress deserves protection,” she said. When it comes to new laws to regulate packaging, Hurtado Rivas wondered aloud: “Who is going to tell us how far is too far?”