A niche blog dedicated to the issues that arise when supplementary protection certificates (SPCs) extend patents beyond their normal life -- and to the respective positions of patent owners, investors, competitors and consumers. The blog also addresses wider issues that may be of interest or use to those involved in the extension of patent rights. You can email The SPC Blog here

Wednesday 16 November 2011

Düsseldorf Novartis/Actavis order now in English too

In "Düsseldorf valsartan/HTC proceedings referred for preliminary ruling" (here) The SPC Blog received an update from Thomas Bopp and Henrik Holzapfel (Gleiss Lutz, Düsseldorf, acting for the Actavis defendanta) on the proceedings in Novartis/Actavis before the Düsseldorf District Court. The update contained the order of that court in the original German, here.

The SPC Blog has since received two English translations of the order of the Düsseldorf District Court.

The first translation to arrive came from Cordula Tellman and Frank-Erich Hufnagel (Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer LLP), which you can read as a pdf file here. As Cordula and Fran-Erich kindly explain, the Court reconfirms the position which it expressed in its ruling in the previous preliminary injunction proceedings: that is, a protection certificate granted for a single active ingredient (e.g. valsartan) would be infringed by a medicinal product containing this single active ingredient, even if combined with another active ingredient (e.g. valsartan + hydrochlorothiazide).  The Court discusses in detail the arguments brought forward by the parties and gives extensive reasoning for its opinion that the SPC is infringed (see in particular paragraphs 17, 20, 22, 24, 28 and 30 of the order).

The second translation, which arrived in a welter of emails following the resumption of this blogger's internet connectivity, came from Thomas and Henrik. You can read it as a pdf file here.

The SPC Blog is grateful to the lawyers of both firms for their efforts to make the ruling and the reasoning of the Düsseldorf court both available and accessible to the SPC community and for their enthusiasm for the subject.

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