IsRAEL
Dr Michael factor
JMB, Fa©tor & Co
CHALLEnGInG tIMEs
Th e Israel Patent and Trademark Offi ce issued several important decisions Accepting that one of the molecules is superior to the racemic mixture, the
last year, with one pharmaceutical company enjoying particular success commissioner distinguished between the requirements for patentability,
opposing patent applications. where such an eff ect could be considered patentable, and the stricter fi rst
patent requirement for patent term extension. On appeal, the decision
Patent oppositions was upheld.
Under Israeli law, aft er allowance, patents are published for a three-month
Unipharm also successfully opposed another Smithkline Beecham patent
opposition period. Seven out of eight opposition rulings published last year
application that claimed novelty for a metastable anhydrate and its method
related to pharmaceutical patents, and Unipharm, an Israeli generic drugs
of manufacture. Th e composition is used to treat a range of mental health
manufacturer, succeeded in voiding six out of the eight patents it opposed.
disorders such as anxiety and depression.
Concerning four Smithkline Beecham patent applications for
An earlier British patent issued to the same applicant claimed the same
thiazolidinedione hydrogenation, the Israel Patent Commissioner
anhydrous salt together with a method of fabrication. Apparently, the
determined the issue in question was inventive step and ruled that the
correct standard was obvious to try, not obvious to succeed.
earlier method was tried and tested. It worked previously but no longer
does, yielding instead a metastable hemihydrate. Th e applicant argued that
Th iazolidinedione is used to treat diabetes. Th e commissioner found three the anhydrate was obtained by the counter-intuitive stage of washing with
patents relating to the use of the relatively gentle borohydride reducing
an aqueous solution, thereby providing an inventive step.
agent on thiazolidinedione as lacking inventive step, but allowed another
that achieves the same product by reacting the thiazolidinedione with
Assistant Commissioner Shmulovits voided the claims for the product
hydrogen in the presence of a surface catalyst under pressure.
as lacking novelty and then voided the method claims as well since the
applicant had acted in bad faith by failing to cite the UK application despite
Th e Intellectual Property Offi ce (IPO) also ruled in favour of Unipharm
having a duty of disclosure.
against Lundbeck, in an opposition to a patent term extension for
intellectual property used in antidepressants. Th e main question was where
However, Unipharm’s opposition to another Smithkline Beecham patent
the racemic mixture of left and right hand molecules is known to have a was rejected, even though the combination in question had been disclosed
physiological eff ect, can one or other of the molecules be considered a new in an earlier patent. Th e SmithKline Beecham patent for the combination
material under the amended pharmaceutical term? of Rosiglitazone RSG and sulphonylurea, also used in diabetes treatment,
98 World Intellectual Property Review Digest 2009 www.worldipreview.com
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