European Union: Possibility To Obtain SPCs Broadened By Three Eagerly Awaited CJ Decisions

On 12 December 2013, the Court of Justice of the European Union ("CJ") handed down three important decisions regarding the interpretation of Regulation 469/2009 (the "SPC Regulation"). These three decisions are expected to impact your SPC strategies.

In Actavis v Sanofi (C-443/12) and Georgetown II (C-484/12), the CJ clarified the circumstances in which Article 3(c) of the SPC Regulation may allow the granting of more than one supplementary protection certificate ("SPC") per basic patent. In Eli Lilly v HGS (C-493/12), the CJ sanctioned a broad interpretation of "protected by a basic patent in force" (3(a) SPC Regulation) which can also include functional claims.

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