Merck Sharp & Dohme Ltd v Wyeth LLC (Rev 1) [2020] EWHC 2636 (Pat) (15 October 2020)

Merck Sharp & Dohme Ltd v Wyeth LLC (Rev 1) [2020] EWHC 2636 (Pat) (15 October 2020)

The patent claims were found invalid for obviousness over de la Pena, as the skilled team would find it obvious to use a surfactant to prevent silicone-induced aggregation in a 13-valent pneumococcal conjugate vaccine with an aluminium adjuvant. The claims were also anticipated by Hausdorff 381 where relevant. The proposed amendments to claims 2 and 17 were found to add matter. There was no infringement as the claims were invalid.

Citation
[2020] EWHC 2636 (Pat)
Parties
Claimant: Merck Sharp & Dohme Limited; Defendant: Wyeth LLC
Jurisdiction
England and Wales
Judgment Date
15 October 2020
Procedural Posture
Patent Revocation and Infringement / First Instance Judgment After Trial
Outcome
Claim for revocation succeeded; counterclaim for infringement dismissed.
Legal Topics
Patent Validity, Patent Infringement, Obviousness, Added Matter, Anticipation, Insufficiency, Equivalents
Intellectual Property Patents Patent Validity Patent Infringement Obviousness Added Matter Anticipation Insufficiency +1 more

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Parties

Merck Sharp & Dohme Limited

Claimant

Wyeth LLC

Defendant

Procedural Posture

Patent Revocation and Infringement / First Instance Judgment After Trial

Legal Issues

  1. 1 Whether the patent claims are anticipated by prior art (Hausdorff 381)
  2. 2 Whether the patent claims are obvious over de la Pena and Chiron
  3. 3 Whether the patent contains added matter in the proposed amendments

Ratio Decidendi

The patent claims were found invalid for obviousness over de la Pena, as the skilled team would find it obvious to use a surfactant to prevent silicone-induced aggregation in a 13-valent pneumococcal conjugate vaccine with an aluminium adjuvant. The claims were also anticipated by Hausdorff 381 where relevant. The proposed amendments to claims 2 and 17 were found to add matter. There was no infringement as the claims were invalid.

Court Disposition

Claim for revocation succeeded; counterclaim for infringement dismissed.

Orders

  • Patent revoked as claims are invalid for obviousness and anticipation.
  • Proposed amendments to claims 2 and 17 refused for added matter.