The general rule in UK litigation is that the successful party is entitled to its costs. One exception to this rule, peculiar to patent cases, is a so-called ‘Earth Closet’ order. If an alleged infringer introduces a new piece of prior art, after service of its original Grounds of Invalidity, an Earth Closet order enables…
The Court of Justice clarified the requirements for grant of an SPC under Articles 3(a) and 3(b) of the SPC Regulation. According to the Court, on the basis of Article 3(a) an SPC cannot be granted for active ingredients not specified in the wording of the claims of the basic patent. With reference to Article…
On 8 December 2011, the presiding judge of the Tribunal de Grande Instance of Paris has rendered an order in the context of the worldwide battle between Samsung and Apple. Samsung alleged that Apple’s iPhones 4S contain chips infringing its European patents No. 1 188 269 and 1 097 516, declared essential to the UMTS standard within the framework of ETSI (European…
The Supreme Court dismissed an appeal , dismissing a revocation action against the patent in suit, which protected the calcium salt of atorvastatin. The Supreme court held that (i) the Bolar provision does not apply with retrospective effect, because its origin and rationale is different from the Experimental Use Exception; and (ii.) an invention that…
The UK Supreme Court overturned the decision of the High Court and the Court of Appeal that HGS’s patent directed towards Neutrokine, a new protein and member of the ligand superfamily, lacked industrial applicability. Click here for the full text of this case. A summary of this case will be posted on http://www.KluwerIPCases.com.
The Supreme Court held that disputes relating to confidential information contained in an expert’s report, filed in the framework of descriptive seizure proceedings, can be heard by the court having granted leave for these proceedings. Such disputes do not have to be adjourned until the proceedings on the merits. Click here for the full text of this…
By Miquel Montañá In year 2021, Italy will celebrate the 600th anniversary of the patent granted by the Republic of Florence to Filippo Brunelleschi for his ship “Il Badalone”, the first patent ever granted. Quite ironically, the fathers of the first patent, and of the first Patent Act, approved by the Republic of Venice in…
The extent of protection conferred by a patent in Poland has its legal basis in the Polish Act on Industrial Property Law of 30 June 2000. According to Article 63 section 2 of the Industrial Property Law, the extent of protection conferred by a patent shall be determined by the scope of the patent claims….
by Stephan von Petersdorff-Campen – rospatt osten pross Where a patent has been exclusively licensed to a third party, it is this licensee who is directly prejudiced by an infringement of said patent. But a 2008 verdict by the German Federal Supreme Court (BGH) also allows the patent holder as licensor to bring his own…
Just a few years ago, the German IP profession suddenly became very, very nervous. The Regional Court of Düsseldorf had issued its first of a handful of decisions wherein the German part of a European Patent was declared ineffective ex tunc for lack of a proper translation of the patent specification into German. This was…
