Right to Repair and E-Waste Governance: A Comparative Legal Analysis of India and the United States

Abstract

The rapid expansion of digital technologies, consumer electronics and connected devices has contributed significantly to the generation of electronic waste (e-waste). The increasing frequency of technological upgrades, limited product repairability, restricted access to spare parts and diagnostic information, and practices associated with planned obsolescence have shortened the useful life of electronic products. Consequently, e-waste governance can no longer be approached solely as a question of waste disposal and recycling. It requires a lifecycle-oriented regulatory framework that incorporates product durability, repair, reuse, refurbishment, recycling and responsible disposal. Against this background, the Right to Repair has emerged as an important regulatory and consumer-protection concept. It seeks to facilitate access to spare parts, repair manuals, diagnostic tools, software and other information necessary for repairing products. This paper comparatively examines the emerging Right to Repair and e-waste governance frameworks in India and the United States. It analyses the relationship between repairability, reuse, planned obsolescence and extended producer responsibility and identifies regulatory gaps that affect the effective implementation of circular-economy principles. The paper proposes an integrated “Repair–Reuse–Regulate” framework. The strategy involves extending product life by repairing things and decreasing premature product disposal/reuse and refurbishment of products to keep product economic and material value; and regulation – puts enforceable responsibilities on manufacturers, consumers, repairers and recyclers. The paper describes the need of an effective governance framework for the e-waste involving interventions throughout the whole product life. This comparative study between India and the United States illustrates the lessons that can be gained from the different approaches being implemented by the two countries in terms of institutional structure, regulatory design and enforcement mechanisms to illustrate a more holistic sustainable governance of electronics.