In their article "Scientific data protection: a new and autonomous IP category", written for International Law Office, Carlos O Mitelman and Daniel R Zuccherino (Obligado & Cia) describe the position in Argentina with regard to the protection of undisclosed test data. First setting the scene by remarking that the interpretation Article 39.3 of TRIPS on the legal protection of undisclosed scientific test or other data necessary for the marketing approval of pharmaceutical or agricultural chemical products is a matter of intense debate, they contrast the two main opinions. The first is that scientific data protection is a new and autonomous category of IP; the second is that it emphatically does not.
The authors then note the importance of the extent of scientific data protection to the pharma sector, where original research results are important for the generic companies too. Among other topics which they review are the Argentine Confidentiality Law (24,766), which is intended to be that country's implementation of TRIPS Articles 39.2 (trade secrets) and 39.3(scientific data).
