The LexCampus Weekly Newsletter No. 12
24th March, 2021
Hi,
This week we look at a judgement by the Delhi HC where it disposed of an application for injunction filed by Astrazeneca, Inc. The HC held that at the stage of preliminary injunction it is not necessary for the Defendants to conclusively prove invalidity of patent, establishment of a prima facie case is sufficient. This week our patent blogpost discusses the relevance of a lawyer in the realm of patent administration and the areas where lawyers can shine within the same. We offer tips on drafting the transition clause in a patent and conclude with a patent related FAQ answered by Prof. Feroz Ali.
PATENT CASE SUMMARY
Astrazeneca AB & Anr. v. Intas Pharmaceuticals Ltd. & Ors.
2020 SCC Online Del 1446
In a recent landmark decision of the Delhi High Court, AstraZeneca AB and AstraZeneca Pharma India Limited (the Plaintiffs) were denied the request for interim injunction against two Indian pharmaceutical companies, Intas Pharmaceuticals Limited (Intas) and Alkem Laboratories Limited (Alkem) (collectively, the Defendants), regarding manufacturing of the compound-inissue i.e., Dapagliflozin [“DAPA”], which was alleged to be infringing the Plaintiff’s two patents bearing Indian Patent numbers 205147 [“IN 147”] and 235625 [“IN 625”], the former being the genus patent while the latter being claimed to be the species patent. The patent term for IN 147 expired on October 02, 2020 while the patent term for IN 625 is valid till May 15, 2023. The patents in question were initially registered by Bristol Myers Squibb and were subsequently assigned to the Plaintiffs vide an assignment deed in 2014. Read more
FROM OUR PATENT BLOG
Lawyers in Patent Administration
Intellectual property rights is an umbrella containing various forms of creations of the mind such as copyright, trademark, design, and patents. Patents exist in the intersection of two diverse and important disciplines, science and law. A patent is a form of intellectual property designed to incentivise innovation and invention in the realm of scientific advancements. This covers a wide range from life saving drugs to computer algorithms to articles of daily use such as laptops and kitchen appliances. Since a monopoly is a serious conferment of rights, legal principles such as public interest and natural justice, as well as interpretation of words are also an integral part of patent regulation. Read more
DRAFTING A PATENT – TRANSITION CLAUSE
- Use of the word “comprises” permits additional elements besides those specifically recited, and at the same time does not enable removal of elements specifically recited.
- In a suit for infringement, the use of the word “comprising” means that each and every element mentioned therein will have to be present in the accusing device to prove infringement. Scope cannot be then re-adjusted to mean that presence of one or more elements will suffice for infringement.
PATENT Q&A
Question: Why does each claim, even if claimed in subsequent specification have separate priority date?
Answer: Claims have separate priority date because claims are drafted from the disclosure. So, that’s the concept of fair basis, you cannot draft a claim and abstract, it has to be based on a disclosure even when the disclosure happens in the complete, you only file a complete and if you have 10 claims, all the 10 claims have to be based on .. Read more and watch video explanation
That’s all folks for this week
Team LexCampus