Notice and Comment - Rules of Practice and Procedure for Board Hearings

The Patented Medicine Prices Review Board (the Board) has published for comment its proposed revised Rules of Practice and Procedure pertaining to the hearing process.

Section 96 of the Patent Act gives the Board certain powers, rights and privileges of a superior court of record. The Board monitors the price at which patentees sell patented medicines, and may, following a public hearing, issue a remedial order with respect to excessive pricing. The Board may also issue an order to require a patentee to file prescribed information or to address a failure to comply with a previous Board order.

The Patent Act provides that the PMPRB may, with the approval of the Governor in Council, make general rules for regulating the practice and procedure of Board hearings.

The Rules of Practice and Procedure (Rules) constitute a published standard set of procedures for all participants to follow in proceedings before the Board. The Rules set out the Board's procedures in accordance with the requirement under the Patent Act to resolve matters before it as informally and expeditiously as the circumstances and considerations of fairness permit. They provide a fair opportunity for interested parties to participate in the Board's hearings.

The current Rules have generally fulfilled their intended purpose. However, the Board is of the view that the Rules should be amended to better reflect current practices in recent proceedings and facilitate case management. The proposed Rules have been drafted to codify the Board's practices and procedures. They take into consideration relevant current practices in other federal administrative tribunals and Courts.

For more information on the Notice and Comment process on the Board's Rules of Practice and Procedure, please contact Sylvie Dupont at 613-954-8299.

Interested parties are invited to submit their written comments on the proposed revised Rules of Practice and Procedure by June 30, 2011, to:

Sylvie Dupont
Director, Board Secretariat and Communications

Patented Medicine Prices Review Board
Box L 40
Standard Life Centre
333 Laurier Avenue West
Suite 1400
Ottawa, Ontario – K1P 1C1