Fettsäuren, Federal Court of Justice (Bundesgerichtshof), 24 September 2013

The later finding of the biological relationships underlying the activity of a drug does not constitute a new teaching for technical action if the indication, the dosage and the way of using the drug coincide with an the prior disclosed use of a drug for the treatment of a disease (confirmed by FCJ 9 June 2011 – X ZR 68/08, GRUR 2011, 999 – “Memantine”). The selection of a value within a known range does not render an invention patentable, unless for special circumstances (e.g. the dosage instruction achieves a particular technical effect vis à vis the prior art).

A full summary of this case has been published on Kluwer IP Law.