Arguments close in the US Supreme Court over business method patents
Yesterday, the US Supreme Court heard oral arguments from both sides in Bilski v Kappos over whether American law should permit patents for business methods.
Way more than an everyday interest in IP
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Yesterday, the US Supreme Court heard oral arguments from both sides in Bilski v Kappos over whether American law should permit patents for business methods.
The Federal Court recently confirmed, in Apotex v Les Laboratoires Servier (No 2), that a patentee’s conduct is a crucial element considered by the Court in relation to the exercise of judicial discretion to amend a patent. In particular, a patentee applying for an amendment must make a full and frank disclosure of all the reasons for seeking the amendment. The amendment must be sought in good faith and without delay. read more…
A report prepared by an advisory committee to the Secretary of Health & Human Services in the United States has recommended that US patent law should be amended to create an exemption from liability for persons who infringe patents for genetic testing technologies. The committee’s recommendations arise from concerns over patient access to genetic tests and the restrictive licensing arrangements between patentees and licensees to administer and exploit the genetic testing technology.
On Friday the Full Federal Court overturned the decision by Ryan J in Wake Forest University Health Sciences v Smith and Nephew Pty Ltd to grant an injunction restraining Smith & Nephew from commercialising its negative pressure wound therapy product.
The joint judgment of Finn, Bennett and Middleton JJ is interesting for two reasons.
The European antitrust watchdog this week conducted surprise raids of the French offices of several major generic pharmaceutical companies as part of a growing investigation into suspected anti competitive practices in the European pharmaceutical market.
Professor Elizabeth Blackburn from Launceston, Tasmania is the first Australian woman to win a Nobel Prize. Her Prize for Medicine is an inspiration to Australian women in science.
Professor Blackburn’s work was responsible for identifying telomerase, the enzyme which forms a cap at the end of our chromosomes to protect them from damage. As cancers depend on telomerase for their continued growth, the work is particularly crucial to the development of treatments for cancer which block the activity of telomerase.
For the third time this year, the Federal Government has amended the Therapeutic Goods Act 1989. These amendments are mostly aimed at tweaking the administrative structures that apply to the regulation of medicines and chemicals. More generally, the new changes form part of the Government’s ongoing reform agenda to replace the Therapeutic Goods Administration (the “TGA”) with the proposed “Australia New Zealand Therapeutic Products Authority”.
A Judge in the US this week vacated the highly publicised US $388 million jury verdict earlier this year against Microsoft for the alleged infringement of an anti-piracy software activation technology patent owned by Uniloc – a software security company founded by Australian entrepreneur Ric Richardson.
The Full Federal Court has confirmed that Sanofi-Aventis’ patent for the drug clopidogrel (brand name Plavix) is invalid and should be revoked. Subject to the question of whether Sanofi will seek a stay pending an application for leave to appeal to the High Court, the decision clears the way for Apotex and other companies to launch their own brands of clopidogrel, a drug designed to prevent platelet aggregation and blood clots, to compete directly with Sanofi.