More On Medicinal Inventions

We previously discussed Japan Patent Office (JPO) examination guidelines on what is patentable as “medicinal use” in respect of “dosage and administration” of chemical entities. In this article, we shall look at the standard of JPO on the patentability of medicinal materials (cells, etc) derived from living organisms which are publicly known. Although Patent Law […]

Medicinal Inventions: Japan Introduces New Examination Guidelines

The Japan Patent Office (JPO) has published a set of revised guidelines on 23rd October 2009 that deals with the patent office examination practice of medicinal invention specified by “dosage and administration”, and of an invention relating to a medical activity. This brief article will look at the former guidelines. We believe this advancement in patent […]

Singapore Patent Update: First Patent to be Revoked by IPOS Under Section 80

Singapore Patent No. SG 42669, entitled “Arachidonic Acid and Methods for the Production and Use thereof”, owned by Martek Biosciences Corporation has the dubious honour of being the first Singapore Patent revoked by the Intellectual Property Office of Singapore (IPOS) under Section 80 of the Singapore Patents Act. By way of history, the SG 42669 […]

What’s in a Shape and Color of a Pharmaceutical Tablet?

If a product has a novel shape and configuration, appeals to the eye, and is not dictated by a function, then the shape can be registered as an Industrial Design. Upon registration, exclusive rights are given to the owner of the design for a limited period of time. Furthermore, if the shape of a product […]

Horny Goat Weed Topples a Claim in Pfizer’s Patent for “Viagra”

Pfizer’s patent US No. 6,469,012 relates to its best selling drug “Viagra”. Following patent infringement claims by Pfizer against Eli Lilly, Lilly ICOS (makers of “Cialis”) and Bayer (maker of “Levitra”) had sought for re-examination of Pfizer’s ‘012 Patent. The claim that is said to cover both “Levitra” and “Cialis” is claim 24. 24.   […]

Plavix Patent Invalidated in Korea

On 15 October 2009, the Supreme Court of Korea dismissed the appeal in the ‘(patent) registration invalidation’ trial that SANOFI-AVENTIS filed against 16 Korean generic drug companies. The Supreme Court ruled that “the original trial decision stating that ‘the novelty and inventive steps (of the original product) are denied’ is fair and has no misunderstanding […]

IP Clinic for Bionexus Companies

Malaysian Biotechnology Corporation Sdn. Bhd. organised its first ever IP Clinic for BioNexus Companies on 18th November 2008. KASS was privileged to conduct a Workshop on Patent Searches and lead a discussion on patent cases on pharmaceutical products in the morning. In the afternoon, KASS had IP Clinics on a one to one confidential basis with […]

Completeness of Research For Obtaining a Patent

Biotechnology and Pharmaceutical product perspective. In many cases we often find that although researchers consider their research as complete, we take the view that the research is incomplete to justify the patent claims filed. This article proposes to discuss the requirements of one aspect of patentability. One of the three legal requirements to obtain a […]