Dealing with the Mailbox Dilemma : Tryst with TRIPS and Bangladesh’s Pharmaceutical Patent Law

Bangladesh is scheduled to graduate from the United Nations’ least developed country (LDC) category in 2026. The graduation to developing country status will revive all the waived obligations under the World Trade Organization Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS) regarding pharmaceutical patents from which Bangladesh was exempted as a member of the LDCs. During its time as an LDC, the Bangladesh government, although having a pre-existing patent regime, established a mailbox system storing pharmaceutical patent applications. Such establishment of a ‘mail- box’ appears to be beyond the government’s delegated legislative authority. Moreover, the government kept receiving such applications for the last one and half decades. This article explores the country’s mailbox dilemma and the implications and challenges of its graduation to developing country status. To respond to such conundrums, this article lays down some immediate and long-term ways forward for the country to ensure access to medicines for its people, who continue to experience huge income inequality