Validity

In most systems, a patent is valid for 20 years from the filing date of the patent application. Patents are granted with a presumption of validity but no patent is safe from being challenged and declared (partially) invalid by national courts or, in the case of European patents, revoked by the European Patent Office. Often, a claim of invalidity of a patent is a reaction to an action of the patentee, in particular an infringement action.

Antibodies, Biologics, Case Law, Damages, Infringement, Injunction, Litigation, United Kingdom, Validity

, (Bristows)/

Whilst being wary of placing too much emphasis on statistics (the phrase “lies, damn lies and statistics” comes to mind), the authors have seen figures which suggest that the last ten years have consistently seen English patent litigation outcomes which are overall less favourable to the patentee than their opponents. That is until 2017, when…

Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, European Union, Extent of Protection, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Netherlands, Norway, Pharma, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Scope of protection, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, SPC, Sweden, United Kingdom, Validity

(Bristows)/ /2 Comments

Yesterday, 25 April 2018, AG Wathelet has handed down his opinion in the Teva v Gilead reference (Case C-121/17) suggesting that the question should be answered as follows: “The fact that a substance or combination of substances falls within the scope of protection of the basic patent is a necessary, but not sufficient, requirement for…

Added matter, Extension of subject matter, Germany, Validity

(Allen & Overy)/

In its judgment of 7 November 2017, X ZR 63/15 – Digitales Buch, the German FCJ (Bundesgerichtshof) took the opportunity to complete its Kommunikationskanal case law on the admissibility of a generalisation of a teaching in patent claims by the omission of specific features that have been taught in the examples of the patent application….

Case Law, Infringement, Inventive step, Litigation, Novelty, Prior art, Revocation, United Kingdom, Validity

, (Bristows)/

Around this time last year, in Edwards Lifesciences v Boston Scientific [2017], His Honour Judge Hacon (sitting as a High Court Judge) had the opportunity to analyse two interesting aspects of UK patent law: (i) the law of implied disclosures and anticipation; and (ii) the importance of so-called secondary evidence in the evaluation of inventive…

Inventive step, Kluwer Patent Cases, Pharmaceutical patent, Prior art, United Kingdom, Validity

(Bristows)/

Last year, Actavis, Teva and Mylan (“Actavis”) sought revocation in the English Patents Court of two patents relating to tadalafil, which is sold by Eli Lilly (“Lilly”) as the active ingredient in CIALIS® to treat erectile dysfunction and pulmonary arterial hypertension. As is the usual course, ICOS (the patentee) and Lilly (the exclusive licensee) subsequently…

Denmark, SPC, Validity

(Bugge Valentin)/ /1 Comment

Just as the case has been in other European jurisdictions, Gilead is currently attempting to enforce its (Danish) SPC for the combination of tenofovir disoproxil (as fumarate) and emtricitabine in Denmark. In the first decision regarding Gilead’s enforcement of this SPC in Denmark, the Danish specialty patents court, the Maritime and Commercial High Court, turned…

EPC, EPO, Equivalents, Inventive step, Litigation, Novelty, Pharma, Pharmaceutical patent, Prior art, Revocation, Second Medical Use, United Kingdom, Validity

(Bristows)/

Patent lawyers in the UK have spent the last three months pondering, debating and at times indulging in an element of despair (to put it mildly) about what might be the impact of the judgment of the Supreme Court in Actavis v Eli Lilly [2017] UKSC 48 on issues of validity (see here). Today they…

(Compulsory) license, Case Law, Germany, Validity

(Rospatt Osten Pross)/

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…

Case Law, Denmark, EPO, Inventive step, Novelty, Validity

(Bugge Valentin)/

Earlier this year, the Danish Maritime and Commercial Court rendered judgment in a patent case between Carl Freudenberg and Stadsing (SH2017.T-14-14S). Carl Freudenberg was the holder of a patent for a mop cover for a cleaning device (DK/EP 1 704 808). Stadsing conceded infringement if the patent-in-suit were held to be valid. Carl Freudenberg argued…