Category: patents

The Supreme Court’s Decision on Pregabalin – NIPC Law

Posted December 10th, 2018 in abuse of process, medicines, news, patents, Supreme Court by sally

‘This was an appeal from the decision of the Court of Appeal in Warner-Lambert Company LLC v Generics (UK) Ltd (t/a Mylan) and Others [2016] EWCA Civ 1006 which I discussed in The Pregabalin Appeal: Generics v Warner-Lambert 17 Oct 2016. In that appeal, the Court of Appeal upheld the decision of Mr Justice Arnold in Generics (UK) Ltd (t/a Mylan) v Warner-Lambert Company LLC [2016] RPC 3, [2015] EWHC 2548 (Pat), [2015] CN 1499 which I blogged in The Pregabalin Trial: Generics (UK) Ltd v Warner-Lambert Company LLC 18 Sept 2015 and his refusal to allow the patent to be amended in Generics (UK) Ltd (t/a Mylan) v Warner-Lambert Company LLC [2016] RPC 16, [2015] EWHC 3370 (Pat).’

Full Story

NIPC Law, 6th December 2018

Source: nipclaw.blogspot.com

Supreme Court deals blow to second medical use patents – Law Society’s Gazette

Posted November 15th, 2018 in appeals, disclosure, intellectual property, medicines, news, patents, standards, Supreme Court by tracey

‘The Supreme Court today dismissed an appeal by pharmaceutical company Pfizer, in a case that should provide clarity on patent law surrounding claims for new medical uses for a protected drug. In judgment handed down this morning the court allowed an appeal by generic drug makers Actavis and Mylan. The decision means Pfizer’s patent covering a second medical use for its product is invalid.’

Full Story

Law Society's Gazette, 14th November 2018

Source: www.lawgazette.co.uk

MPs suggest patent law reforms to combat antimicrobial resistance – OUT-LAW.com

Posted November 1st, 2018 in health, inquiries, medicines, news, patents, pilot schemes, select committees by sally

‘The UK government should consider changing patent law to incentivise major pharmaceutical companies to develop new antibiotics to address the “grave threat to health” posed by antimicrobial resistance (AMR), a committee of MPs has said.’

Full Story

OUT-LAW.com, 1st November 2018

Source: www.out-law.com

Repairing patented equipment – what is allowed? – Technology Law Update

Posted October 31st, 2018 in news, patents, repairs by sally

‘The owner of an item embodying patented technology is allowed to have the item repaired, but if the repairing goes too far it can stray into “making” the item and infringe the patent. A recent ruling explores the boundary between making and repairing, providing some helpful pointers in relation to complex products.’

Full Story

Technology Law Update, 30th October 2018

Source: www.technology-law-blog.co.uk

The Court of Appeal considers FRAND: Unwired Planet v Huawei – NIPC Law

Posted October 30th, 2018 in appeals, competition, EC law, injunctions, licensing, news, patents by sally

‘FRAND stands for “fair, reasonable and non-discriminatory”. It is an acronym to describe the terms upon which licences should be granted for standard essential patents (“SEPs”). SEPs are patents for inventions that are crucial for compliance with a technical standard. I attempted an introduction to FRAND terms and SEPs in FRAND on 8 Oct 2017. Lord Kitchin gave a much better one in the first five paragraphs of his judgment in Unwired Planet International Ltd and Another v Huawei Technologies Co Ltd and Another [2018] EWCA Civ 2344 (23 Oct 2018).’

Full Story

NIPC Law, 28th October 2018

Source: nipclaw.blogspot.com

Patents: multiple FRAND terms possible, says UK court – OUT-LAW.com

Posted October 24th, 2018 in appeals, competition, EC law, injunctions, licensing, news, patents, telecommunications by tracey

‘It is possible for more than one set of proposed licensing terms for standard-essential patents (SEPs) to be fair, reasonable and non-discriminatory (FRAND), the Court of Appeal in London has said.’

Full Story

OUT-LAW.com, 24th October 2018

Source: www.out-law.com

Court of Appeal offers clarity on patent ‘standards’ – Law Society’s Gazette

Posted October 24th, 2018 in appeals, injunctions, licensing, news, patents, telecommunications by tracey

‘A battle over appropriate licensing methods for patents deemed essential for a particular industry’s technical standards could be heading to the Supreme Court after the Court of Appeal today upheld a lower court’s ruling. Companies that own SEPs are required to license those patents at a fair, reasonable and non-discriminatory rate, known as FRAND. In Unwired Planet v Huawei, the Court of Appeal accepted the High Court’s determination that an owner of a standard-essential patent (SEP) for mobile phones can meet its obligations to making rights available fairly by offering a worldwide licence. Lord Justice Kitchin’s ruling added that if that offer is refused, an alleged infringer may be subject to an injunction.’

Full Story

Law Society's Gazette, 23rd October 2018

Source: www.lawgazette.co.uk

Unified Patent Court: UK to be a member during Brexit transition – OUT-LAW.com

Posted August 10th, 2018 in courts, international courts, news, patents by sally

‘The UK government has revealed that a deal was struck earlier this year to enable the UK to participate in the new Unified Patent Court (UPC) system during any Brexit implementation period that might apply.’

Full Story

OUT-LAW.com, 8th August 2018

Source: www.out-law.com

Patents: A P Racing Ltd v Alcon Components Ltd (#2) – NIPC Law

Posted June 26th, 2018 in appeals, news, patents by sally

‘This was an appeal by the claimant company, A P Racing Ltd (“AP”), against the decision of His Honour Judge Hacon in AP Racing Ltd v Alcon Components Ltd [2017] EWHC 248 (IPEC) (15 Feb 2017). His Honour held that one of 7 disk brake calipers manufactured by Alcon Components Ltd (“Alcon”) infringed UK patent no. GB 2,452,690 for a disc brake caliper body and a disc brake caliper comprising such a body but the other 6 did not. AP appealed against the finding of non-infringement in relation to 2 of Alcon’s calipers, CAR 1249 and CAR 37.’

Full Story

NIPC Law, 24th June 2018

Source: nipclaw.blogspot.com

Unitary patent and Unified Patent Court reforms: state of play May 2018 – OUT-LAW.com

Posted May 2nd, 2018 in courts, EC law, news, patents, treaties by tracey

‘The UK’s recent ratification of the Unified Patent Court (UPC) Agreement marked an important step towards a new system of unitary patent protection becoming operational. The process has been lengthy and complex and is not over yet.’

Full Story

OUT-LAW.com, 1st May 2018

Source: www.out-law.com

Obviousness – Hospira v Cubist Appeal – NIPC Law

Posted January 25th, 2018 in appeals, intellectual property, medicines, news, patents by tracey

‘Daptomycin is an antibiotic used to treat systemic and life-threatening infections caused by multiple drug resistant bacteria. Its effectiveness depends on its purity. The invention for which the patent in suit was granted was a way of purifying the antibiotic. In Hospira UK Ltd v Cubist Pharmaceuticals LLC [2016] EWHC 1285 (Pat) (10 June 2016), Hospira UK Ltd, (a British subsidiary of Pfizer) sought the revocation of that patent. Mr Justice Henry Carr found that the patent was invalid and ordered its revocation. Cubist Pharmaceuticals LLC (a subsidiary of Merck & Co.) appealed against that judgment and order in Hospira UK Ltd v Cubist Pharmaceuticals LLC [2018] EWCA Civ 12 (18 Jan 2018).’

Full Story

NIPC Law, 24th January 2018

Source: nipclaw.blogspot.co.uk

Construction of Terms in Cross-Licensing Agreements: Koninklijke Philips N.V. v Asustek Computer Incorporation and Others – NIPC Law

Posted October 16th, 2017 in agreements, appeals, intellectual property, interpretation, licensing, news, patents, standards, telecommunications by sally

‘In FRAND 8 Oct 2017 I discussed the terms upon which patents for inventions that are essential to a standard are licensed. I noted that courts around the world had held that those terms should be fair, reasonable and non-discriminatory – in other words, FRAND. The Court of Appeal’s decision in Koninklijke Philips N.V. v Asustek Computer Incorporation and Others [2017] EWCA Civ 1526 (11 Oct 2017) concerned the construction of a clause licensing such patents. It is important to note, however, that none of the judges who heard the appeal mentioned the acronym, FRAND, and it appeared only twice in the judgment of the trial judge.’

Full Story

NIPC Law, 13th October 2017

Source: nipclaw.blogspot.co.uk

FRAND – NIPC Law

Posted October 9th, 2017 in competition, EC law, inventions, licensing, news, patents, public interest, standards by sally

‘FRAND stands for “fair, reasonable and non-discriminatory”. It refers to the terms upon which the owner of a patent for an invention that is essential to a standard (“standard essential patent” or “SEP”) should license its use.’

Full Story

NIPC Law, 8th October 2017

Source: nipclaw.blogspot.co.uk

The Supreme Court’s Judgment in Eli Lilly v Actavis UK Ltd and Others: how to understand it and why it is important – NIPC Law

Posted July 14th, 2017 in cancer, competition, medicines, news, patents, Supreme Court by tracey

‘Supreme Court (Lords Neuberger, Mance, Clarke, Sumption and Hodge) Eli Lilly v Actavis UK Ltd and others [2017] UKSC 48 (12 July 2017)

What the Appeal was about
The pharmaceutical company Eli Lilly and Co (“Lilly”) has developed a drug called pemetrexed which it markets under the brand name Alimta for the treatment of various types of cancer. Used on its own, pemetrexed has unpleasant side effects that can sometimes be fatal but these can be avoided when it is administered as a compound called pemetrexed disodium in combination with vitamin B12.’

Full Story

NIPC Law, 13th July 2017

Source: nipclaw.blogspot.co.uk

UK takes ‘final legislative step’ needed to ratify the Unified Patent Court reforms – OUT-LAW.com

Posted June 28th, 2017 in courts, news, patents, privilege, regulations by sally

‘A piece of legislation that UK law makers must pass so that the country can ratify a new Unified Patent Court (UPC) system in Europe has been laid before parliament.’

Full Story

OUT-LAW.com, 26th June 2017

Source: www.out-law.com

Chugai Pharmaceutical Co Ltd v UCB Pharma SA and another; Chugai Pharmaceutical Co Ltd v UCB Biopharma SPRL – WLR Daily

Posted June 15th, 2017 in conflict of laws, jurisdiction, law reports, licensing, patents by sally

Chugai Pharmaceutical Co Ltd v UCB Pharma SA and another; Chugai Pharmaceutical Co Ltd v UCB Biopharma SPRL [2017] EWHC 1216 (Pat)

‘The first defendant in the first of two claims entered into a licence with the claimant in respect of a portfolio of patents, including a US patent, concerning tocilizumab, an immunosuppressive drug. The claimant sought, inter alia, a declaration that it was not obliged to continue to pay royalties under the licence in respect of its tocilizumab products. The defendants alleged that, although framed as a claim for a declaration relating to a contract, a part of the proceedings, in substance, concerned not only the scope but also the validity of the US patent. Accordingly, consideration of the claim would infringe the territorial limits of the courts jurisdictional powers and constitute an affront to comity (“the Moçambique rule”) and/or the foreign act of state doctrine, which militated against the English court determining issues relating to sovereign acts of a foreign state.’

WLR Daily, 26th May 2017

Source: www.iclr.co.uk

Huawei legal challenge against validity of Unwired Planet patent dismissed by London court – OUT-LAW.com

Posted April 26th, 2017 in news, patents, telecommunications by sally

‘Chinese mobile device manufacturer Huawei has lost a legal challenge against the validity of a patent owned by Unwired Planet.’

Full story

OUT-LAW.com, 25th April 2017

Source: www.out-law.com

Nokia and Apple patent dispute comes before High Court in London – OUT-LAW.com

Posted April 10th, 2017 in arbitration, foreign companies, foreign jurisdictions, injunctions, intellectual property, news, patents, telecommunications by sally

‘Finnish mobile device manufacturer Nokia was due to argue that Apple has infringed one of its technology patents before the High Court in London on Friday.’

Full story

OUT-LAW.com, 7th April 2017

Source: www.out-law.com

Brexit, Article 50 and what it means for innovative businesses – Technology Law Update

Posted March 29th, 2017 in brexit, data protection, EC law, news, patents, referendums, treaties by sally

‘The shock of last June’s referendum result, with the UK electorate opting to leave the European Union, is starting to fade. Now the hard graft begins. Tomorrow British Prime Minister Theresa May will trigger Article 50, starting the two year process of negotiations that will end with a deal, an untidy departure or (maybe) an agreement to keep talking. Since the first analysis of what Brexit will mean for businesses we have learned more about what the UK intends to keep and discard. How are things looking now?’

Full story

Technology Law Update, 28th March 2017

Source: www.technology-law-blog.co.uk

UK businesses see record number of European patents granted by EPO – OUT-LAW.com

Posted March 9th, 2017 in EC law, intellectual property, news, patents, reports, statistics by sally

‘A record number of European patents were granted to UK businesses in 2016 by the European Patent Office (EPO), according to new figures.’

Full story

OUT-LAW.com, 9th March 2017

Source: www.out-law.com