by Dr. Simon Klopschinski In the wake of the evolving Corona pandemic the German government intends enacting amendments to the German Act on the Prevention and Control of Infectious Diseases in Humans (Gesetz zur Verhütung und Bekämpfung von Infektionskrankheiten beim Menschen – Infektionsschutzgesetz – IfSG), which could also have an impact on patents. The bill…

On 20 September 2018, the Treasury Laws Amendment (2018 Measures No. 5) Bill 2018 (Bill) was tabled in Australia’s House of Representatives. Among the amendments proposed was the repeal of Section 51(3) of the Competition and Consumer Act 2010 (Cth) (CCA), a change that could significantly impact IP licensing and assignment arrangements within Australia. The…

  On March 28, 2018, the Beijing High Court issued its decision for Iwncomm v. Sony, a high profile case concerning infringement of a standard essential patent (SEP). The appellate court amended the trial judgment on some key findings, but still upheld a permanent injunction and damages of about CNY 9 million (USD 1.3 million)….

In this case the Federal Court of Justice (FCJ) allowed a compulsory licence under a patent for a pharmaceutical active ingredient for the first time ever. The Court held that a public interest in such a licence may still exist where it concerns only a small group of patients. In particular, the interest may be…

In March our partner Hetti Hilge reported on a preliminary injunction by which the Federal Patent Court granted Merck an interlocutory compulsory license for Merck’s HIV drug Isentress in the light of Shionogi’s Raltegravir patent EP 1 422 218 (link). The compusory license has now been confirmed in the second instance PI proceedings by the…

On March 22, 2017, the Beijing IP Court (the “trial court”) issued a decision on a high-profile case Iwncomm v. Sony concerning infringement of a standard essential patent (SEP). This case has drawn extensive attention in China’s IP community because it is the first SEP-based injunction granted by a Chinese court, and it involves quite…

by Rachael Cartwright On 5 April 2017, Mr Justice Birss handed down his highly anticipated, lengthy and potentially controversial judgment on the FRAND licensing and competition law aspects of the long running Unwired Planet patent saga. Running at 163 pages, and a mere 807 paragraphs, the judgment sets out the history and fundamental principles of…

In a judgment in preliminary proceedings the Bundespatentgericht (German Federal Patent Court) granted the pharmaceutical company Merck the right to use European patent EP 1 422 218 and to continue sales of the AIDS drug Isentress in Germany. It is the first time in its 55-year history that the Bundespatentgericht granted a compulsory patent license…

Following the CJEU judgment Huawei vs ZTE (Case C-170/13) of 16 July 2015, the national courts continue refining the requirements for the assertion of standard-essential patents (SEPs). So far, the first instance courts in Germany (in particular in Duesseldorf, Mannheim and Munich) showed a tendency to apply the principles of the CJEU decision in a…

On 1st April 2016 the National Human Right Commission (NHRC) called on the Indian government to submit reports on the allegations that the Indian government had given private assurances to the US that India would adopt a stringent approach when granting compulsory licences over patented drugs. While the Ministry of Commerce & Industry in a…