Vifor International Ltd (hereinafter referred to as Vifor) is a pharmaceutical company of Switzerland, incorporated in 1991. The company was granted a patent in India, patent no. IN 221536 titled ‘Water Soluble Iron Carbohydrate Complex and a process for producing Water Soluble Iron Carbohydrate Complex’, (hereinafter referred to as “IN’536”). The granted patent related to Ferric Carboxymaltose (hereinafter referred to as “FCM”) which is a water soluble iron carbohydrate of complex of iron and oxidation product of one or more maltodextrins. Application for the grant of a patent w

Gasoline pumps are also called ‘bowsers’ or petrol bowsers in Australia and New Zealand. In the UK, a water tanker is also called a water bowser. The Dictionary reveals that the word “bowser” is also a tanker containing fuel for aircraft, military vehicles and the like. No matter wherever the word is used, its origin is linked with the great inventor, Sylvanus Freelove Bowser of Fort Wayne, Indiana, who was born on August 8, 1854.

Accidental Inventions as the name suggests refer to the discovery or creation of something new or useful that was not intentionally sought after. Accidental inventions have played a significant role in shaping our world, from the discovery of penicillin to the creation of the microwave oven. In some cases, accidental inventions have even led to entire industries and new fields of research. These inventions often arise from unexpected or accidental circumstances, such as a laboratory mishap or a chance encounter. While not all accidental inventions may be successful or have significant impact,

Accidental Inventions as the name suggests refer to the discovery or creation of something new or useful that was not intentionally sought after. Accidental inventions have played a significant role in shaping our world, from the discovery of penicillin to the creation of the microwave oven. In some cases, accidental inventions have even led to entire industries and new fields of research. These Accidental #Inventions as the name suggests refers to the #discovery or creation of something #new or #useful that was not #intentionally sought after. From the discovery of #penicillin to the #creatio

The Principles of Natural Justice should be followed by the authorities while holding the dais of justice. Speaking Order is considered to be the third pillar of natural justice as it enumerates the relevant reasonings which paved the way for arriving at a certain decision. The paucity of necessary reasonings in any decision raises a doubt of arbitrariness, which is a nightmare for any justice delivery system. This article focuses on a similar issue which was brought to the kind notice of the Hon’ble Delhi High Court in the matter of Rosemount Inc. v. Deputy Controller of Patents and Designs

Accidental Inventions as the name suggests refers to the discovery or creation of something new or useful that was not intentionally sought after. From the discovery of penicillin to the creation of the microwave oven, accidental inventions have played a significant role in shaping our world. In some cases, accidental inventions have even led to entire industries and new fields of research. These inventions often arise from unexpected or accidental circumstances, such as a laboratory mishap or some encounter by chance. The invention of the Pacemaker is one such case of serendipity!

Conversations with Dr. Mohan Dewan

Conversations with Dr. Mohan Dewan

Worldwide intellectual property applications in 2021 have shown an increase over the previous years. 3.4 million Patent applications have been received by various patent offices around the world, out of which more than one-third have been received by the local patent offices of China. Receiving 1.59 million patent applications, China registered an increase of 5.5% over the previous year. USA was a distant second with 591,473, followed by Japan (289200), Republic of Korea (237998) and EPO (188788). The filings of China are highlighted by the fact that if the filings of 2nd to 13th country are a

Despite rewarding the exclusive right of a patentee on the invention, it was understood that there might be some cases where certain humane obligations are to be addressed, which is why certain exceptions are allowed under the Act that would otherwise be considered patent infringement, “Bolar Provision” aka “Bolar Exception” aka “Regulatory Exception” is one of these exceptions.

The court issued order taking suo moto notice due to what appears to be a delay on the side of the State and to prevent the matter from becoming infructuous as a result of the petitioner's passing. The government was instructed to take into account the request to employ the Patent Act's levers by the case court's earlier order, which was issued on June 14, 2022.

Conversations with Dr. Mohan dewan

For the purpose of this article, only the Indian prosecution before the IPO is focussed. For instance, the Indian patent (IN360407) claimed “A transglutaminase-mediated site-specific antibody-drug conjugate comprising the formula: antibody-(T-(X-Y-Za) b) c, wherein: T is 1) a glutamine-containing tag engineered at a specific site, 2) an endogenous glutamine, and/or 3) an endogenous glutamine made reactive by antibody engineering or an engineered transglutaminase; X is an amine donor unit; Y is a linker; and Z is an agent moiety; X-Y-Z is an amine donor agent site-specifically con

Conversations with Dr. Mohan Dewan

According to Section 146 read with Rule 131 of Indian Patent Act, a patentee or a licensee, exclusive or otherwise, of a granted patent, is required to submit a statement regarding the working of the patented invention on a commercial scale in India in the prescribed manner in Form-27. Let us see the nitty-gritty around this much hyped Form -27.

The year 2019 exposed humankind to an unprecedented situation. While preparing to welcome the New Year, the world was unaware of the devastating condition lurking around the corner. A viral infection caused by the Novel strain COVID-19, engulfed all the continents in the blink of an eye. Covid-19 had severe, devasting effects in all spheres that were initially not envisaged causing irreversible damage. The global medical community was shaken by this phenonmena. The world was in lockdown situation for almost a year. The economy of most countries was impacted and the public was grappling with cr

By a Gazette notification dated 20th October, 2020, the Government of India has amended the Statement of Working Requirements to be submitted in Form-27 to the Indian Patent Office.

Under the Indian patent law, an applicant (Indian or foreign) may claim the status of a “Small Entity” if it meets certain specified criteria. The “Small Entity” status can be claimed either for filing direct patent applications in India or for filing National Phase or Convention Applications in India. Since September 2019, it is possible to file a request for expedited examination where the status of the applicant is a “Small Entity”.

Indian patent law on pharmaceuticals differs from other countries in more than one way, with some of them being the most debated topics in IP domestically, says Amrish Tiwari, a partner at K&S Partners in Gurgaon. “Some of the profound differences are:

We don’t know when our lives will be back to “Normal”. But it is certain that nothing much will change until humans develop herd immunity, the virus mutates into an innocuous strain, or we have a vaccine. Yes, pharma companies and research institutions are trying their best to create vaccines or drugs to reduce the effects of the virus. Still further, other entities are involved in creating immunity boosters to build up the immunity of humans, so that the virus can be contained.

In order to patent an invention, whether for a product or a process, it needs to meet the following patentability criteria: • Novelty • Inventive step (non-obviousness) • Industrial applicability

The outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic has forced all businesses and functioning of various organizations to come to a standstill. One such majorly affected system is the Judicial System. As on date, only high priority/high urgency matters are being heard vide remote access provided to the judges. We are well-aware of the plethora of cases which are pending with the Courts in our country today and time again hear citizens complaint of delayed justice.

Biomedical engineering is a unique combination of medicine, biology and engineering or rather the application of engineering principles to medicine and biology.

On the 15th of July 2014, quietly and without much fanfare, the Bombay High Court passed judgment on the writ petition filed by Bayer Corporation in the celebrated compulsory license case between them and Natco...

The Indian patent system has the unique distinction of having an elaborate system in place to ensure that a patent is not wrongly granted for a “questionable” invention...

Section 17 of the Indian Patents Act provides for postdating of patent applications....

Many inventions, particularly those that relate to biological material include such material which is not available to the public...

Infringers of patents in India have several weapons available to them in their arsenal...

Galderma, a Swiss pharmaceutical company majoring in dermatological preparations...

On 28th February, 2014, the Indian Patent Office published and implemented a new set of rules which came into effect immediately. Under these rules, a new Applicant Entity referred to as a “Small Entity” has been created. There are now therefore three different Applicants and different sets of fees will apply to each of these Applicants.

Biotechnology may be defined as the combined use of science and technology to exploit biological processes.

The inventor is the principal actor in the patent prosecution drama. Section 7 of the Indian Patents Act prescribes that where the application is made by virtue of an assignment of the right to apply for a patent for an invention....

An agreement between the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) and the Indian Patent Office (IPO), hereinafter referred to as ‘the Agreement’, recently came into force, whereby the IPO commenced working as an International Searching Authority (ISA) and an International Preliminary Examination Authority (IPEA), under the Patent Co-operation Treaty (PCT). The IPO now joins ranks with the likes of the Australian Patent Office, the Canadian Patent Office, the European Patent Office (EPO), the State Intellectual Property Office of the People’s Republic of China (SIPO) and the United

Inventive step is defined in Section 2(1)(ja) of the Indian Patents Act, 1970 (the Act) as ‘a feature of an invention that involves technical advance as compared to the existing knowledge or having economic significance or both and that makes the invention not obvious to a person skilled in the art’. The term ‘person skilled in the art,’ a vital ingredient of this section, has surfaced time and again in many judgments and has attracted extensive debate amongst legal practitioners and scholars alike, as to who the person skilled in the art actually should be. The Intellectual Property A

The manner in which information is shared with friends and colleagues has changed drastically since the outbreak of mobile technology. These days, almost every mobile user uses multiple mobile applications associated with social media services, social networking, social gaming and the like. The growing popularity of such mobile applications comes with important legal issues as this industry is highly prone to intellectual property rights (IPR) infringement.

The patent system was designed with a view to promote innovation, by granting exclusive monopoly rights to the patent holder for a limited period of time. These rights are granted not for using the invention, but for preventing others from using it without the patent owner’s consent. An erroneously granted patent, however, would prejudice the rights of the public to freely use that technology. Therefore, it is essential to provide a mechanism whereby only good quality patents are granted.

The Indian Patent Office has issued a set of guidelines for the examination of patent applications in the field of CRIs (Computer Related Inventions) so as to bring about uniformity and consistency in the examination of computer related inventions.

Inconsistency in the arguments put forth by patent applicants and their attorneys and the subsequent prejudice to their intellectual property (IP) portfolio, is not a new occurrence in the IP sector. A recent decision on a patent application of a pharmaceutical giant has led to the resurfacing of this unfortunate issue that has urged people, time and again, to practice by the maxim, ‘Don’t raise your voice, improve your argument’.

The Intellectual Property Appellate Board (IPAB) on 5th July 2013, dismissed Monsanto Technology’s appeal regarding the invention titled, ‘A method of producing a transgenic plant with increased heat tolerance, salt tolerance, or drug tolerance’ thereby upholding the Controller’s decision to refuse the patent application.

The Indian Patent Office issued a notification on June 12, 2013 regarding the release of the Draft Patent (Amendment) Rules, 2013 with a view to further amending the Patent Rules 2003. The primary aim, as is evident on the face of the draft, is to increase the fees associated with various procedures under the Patents Act, 1970.

Provisions for third party observations are well established in certain jurisdictions like the UK Intellectual Property Office and the European Patent Office (EPO). From September 2012, the America Invents Act also introduced provisions for third-party submissions on US patent applications. These provisions are based on similar concepts as the pre-grant oppositions in several countries like India, New Zealand, Australia, Peru etc., of assisting the patent office in determining the patentability of the invention before the grant of the patent and to increase the validity and quality of the gran

A patent is an instrument of commerce. The value of the patent depends upon its specification and therefore, it is extremely important that the specification should be drafted with accuracy and clarity. Writing a good specification involves a great deal of time, effort and money, but if the specification is poorly drafted, even more time, effort and money may be spent in defending the claims. Carefully drafted claims can secure a company’s financial future or spell a company’s ruin.

On the 1st of April 2013, the Indian Supreme Court pronounced its judgment in the Special Leave Petition preferred by Novartis to determine the true import of Section 3(d) of the Patents Act 1970 as a result of the rejection of the product claims by the Controller of Patents and the Intellectual Property Appellate Board (IPAB).

In 2002, the foreign filing license requirement was introduced in the Indian Patents Act of 1970. This requirement provided that any inventor who is a resident of India should file or cause to be filed a patent application for his/her own invention first in India; and only after a period of six weeks after the date of filing of the patent application, a filing could be done in a country outside India.

Along with every patent application filed at the Indian Patent Office, the applicant is required to give...

Sugen/Pfizer lost their patent rights relating to Sunitinib, a drug for treating renal cell carcinoma (RCC) and imatinib-resistant gastrointestinal stromal tumor (GIST) on account of weak and unplanned strategic Intellectual Property Management. They failed to understand the ground realities about the Patent System in India whichled to a complete letdown in forecasting the potential threats.Though the Assistant Controller accepted the novelty of the subject matter disclosed in IN209251, the patent was revoked on the grounds of lack ofinventive step based on the teachings of threeprior art pate

An analysis of the real issues involved in the controversial case of the Basmati Rice Patents from various perspectives: commercial, legal and general. Point-to-point explanation of widely held misconceptions arising from limited awareness.