Originator vs. Generics – Pharmaceutical patents in the context of PI proceedings – latest developments and trends in German patent infringement litigation, PharmR 6/2022

In the latest issue of Pharma Recht, Dr Marco Stief and Dr Christian Meyer review and summarise the rather game-changing legal and factual developments in the practical enforcement of pharmaceutical patents in preliminary injunction proceedings in Germany. From an economical point of view, enormous sums are often at stake. Accordingly, originator companies are vigorously attempting to defend their monopolistic position against the market entry of so-called generics. Whereas, up until the beginning of 2000, there were still doubts regarding the general applicability of preliminary injunction proceedings in the field of life sciences and pharmaceuticals, and courts tended to dismiss preliminary injunctions applications, not least due to the complexity of the subject matter. This trend has been reversed in recent years, with the result that some district courts now grant preliminary injunctions even in difficult or even, ambiguous patent infringement and/or patent validity situations, sometimes within a few days and without a prior hearing for the defendant.