Thesis (LL.M.)--University of Toronto (Canada), 2007
"Authorized generics" (AGs) is the code name for the practice whereby the innovator companies create or licence their own generic version of the drug by sticking a generic label on the product instead of a brand label. This practice may have the effect of keeping generic drug manufacturers out of the market, resulting in increased drug prices to the consumers. The crux of this debate is handling the intersection of the patent rights and consumer rights (competition regulation). I take the approach that a patent right can be limited in favour of consumer protection so long as that limitation will not substantially affect the incentive to innovate. I consider the issue of AGs in the framework of three anti-competitive acts: collusion, predatory pricing, and unfair competition/abuse of dominance. I conclude that AGs are anti-competitive and their entry times can be limited while maintaining the necessary incentives for innovators to innovate
