EPLAW Patent Blog

HU - No preliminary injunction based on provisional patent protection

(Redacted Judgment), preliminary injunction proceedings, Metropolitan Appeal Court, Budapest, Hungary, 26 May 2009, Docket No. 8.Pkf (redacted)

No preliminary injunction available if the patent protection is only provisional.

The Metropolitan Appeal Court in Budapest confirmed the first instance ruling of the Metropolitan Court in which it rejected the request for a preliminary injunction that was submitted by a French pharmaceutical manufacturer against a major Hungarian competitor based on a pharmaceutical product patent that was still under provisional protection.

Read an English translation of the first instance judgment here. Original judgment follows later.

Read an English translation of the appeal judgment here. Original judgment follows later.

Read a more extended summary after the page break.

IT - Rheon Automatic Machinery v. Tecno Stamp

Rheon Automatic Machinery Co. LTD. v. Tecno Stamp S.R.L., damages proceedings, Venice Court, Italy, 22 May 2009, Docket No. 3469/2004, with thanks to Sandro Hassan, Siblegal

The Venice Court discusses the criteria to assess damages for patent infringement.

The previous interim judgment in this case, which acknowledged infringement and ordered continuation of the proceedings for damage assessment, is published in IIC 6/2008, page 730. 

Read the judgment (in Italian) here.

Read the judgment (in English) here.

DE - Holzhäcksler / infringement

Holzhäcksler (Wood chaff cutter), infringement proceedings (preliminary injunction and validity), Court of Appeals Düsseldorf, 18 May 2009, Docket No. 2 U 140/08

The Court refused to grant a preliminary injunction for patent infringement because the patent in dispute lacked sufficiently secure validity due to contradicting votes in view of the same set of facts and basically the “same invention”: a parallel utility model was cancelled by the German Patent and Trademark Office (also with respect to sub claims), while the patent in dispute was granted after prosecution.

Read the judgment (in German) here.

UK - LEO Pharma v. Sandoz Limited / First instance

LEO Pharma A/S and LEO Laboratories Limited v. Sandoz Limited, invalidity proceedings, High Court of Justice, Chancery Division, Patents Court, UK, 15 May 2009, Docket No. HC08C00391, with thanks to Marc Döring and Rowan Freeland, Simmons & Simmons

Sandoz unsuccessfully challenges Leo's patent on the basis that the claimed invasion is anticipated by and/or it is obvious in light of an earlier LEO patent application. None of the claims of the patent (for a new crystalline form of calcipotriol, calcipotriol monohydrate, used in the treatment of psoriasis) was found to be invalid. The infringement claim had been admitted by the defendant on the eve of trial and the counterclaim for revocation was dismissed.

Read the judgment (in English) here.

Read an extended summary of the case here (provided by Marc Döring and Rowan Freeland who represented LEO Pharma). 

Read the judgment on appeal (in English) here.

DE - Pneumatisches Schlagwerkzeug / infringement

Pneumatisches Schlagwerkzeug (Pneumatic striking tool), infringement proceedings (introducing a new claim on appeal), Court of Appeals Düsseldorf, Germany, 14 May 2009, Docket No. 2 U 65/04

Asserting a claim for destruction of the infringing embodiments for the first time in the appeal instance is a generally admissible extension of the original complaint.

Read the judgment (in German) here.

IT - Saip & Schyller, Schneider Electric Industries / Optima

Saip & Schyller S.p.A., Schneider Electric and Industries Sas and Schneider Electric S.p.A. re 'Optima', appeal from decision rejecting a preliminary injunction, Milan Court, Italy, 14 May 2009, Docket No. 5439/09, With thanks to Sandro Hassan, Siblegal

Rejected appeal from a decision rejecting a request for preliminary injunction due to doubts both as to infringement and as to validity (one of the patents involved is EP 1811603, which has recently been revoked by the EPO).

Read the judgment (in Italian) here.

Read the judgment (in English) here.