McDonnell Boehnen Hulbert & Berghoff LLP

The Supreme Court ruled 5-3 today in favor of the Federal Trade Commission in FTC v. Actavis, Inc. Writing for the majority that included Justices Kennedy, Ginsburg, Sotomayor and Kagan, Justice Breyer's opinion reversed the…more

The Supreme Court ruled unanimously June 13, 2013 in favor of Plaintiffs/Petitioners in Association of Molecular Pathologists v. Myriad Genetics on the question of whether isolated DNA is patent eligible. The opinion found a…more

About Court Report: Each week we will report briefly on recently filed biotech and pharma cases. Fresenius Kabi USA, LLC v. Watson Laboratories Inc. et al. 1:13-cv-01015; filed June 6, 2013 in the District Court of…more

Perhaps one of the most intriguing issues coming out of the Supreme Court's Myriad decision is whether it leaves any room for the "inventive concept" test raised by earlier Supreme Court decisions, including Mayo v. Prometheus. …more

Last week, The Supremes once again stepped into an area of science/law where their limited knowledge of both fields will create more harm than good. The Supremes' say that the problem with isolated and purified DNA is that it…more

In a much anticipated decision, the Supreme Court issued its opinion this morning in Association for Molecular Pathology v. Myriad Genetics, Inc. In an opinion by Justice Thomas, joined by Chief Justice Roberts, Justices…more

On the same day that the Supreme Court handed down its decision in Association for Molecular Pathology v. Myriad Genetics, Inc., the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office issued a one-page memorandum to its Patent Examining Corps to…more

The Supreme Court rendered its opinion in Association for Molecular Pathology v. Myriad Genetics, Inc. ("the Myriad case"), and in many ways it was anticlimactic: the Court adopted the Department of Justice's position…more

There has been a lot of discussion recently in the mainstream press regarding the U.S. patent system and its perceived failings. The current outcries stem from the apparent proliferation of "Patent Trolls," also known by the…more

The Court of Appeal recently heard a case relating to Genentech's patent, which claimed the use of human vascular endothelial growth factor (hVEGF) antagonists for the treatment of non-cancerous diseases which are characterised…more

It has been less than three months since the remaining provisions of the Leahy-Smith America Invents Act (AIA) took effect, and just short of five months since the AIA Technical Corrections Act was enacted to "correct and…more

In Oliver Brüstle v Greenpeace (Case 34/10) the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) ruled that any non-fertilised but parthenogenically stimulated human ovum constitutes a "human embryo" within the meaning of Article…more

Earlier this year, the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office and European Patent Office announced the formal launch of the Cooperative Patent Classification (CPC) system, a global classification system for patent documents. The CPC…more

Merck Canada Inc and Merck Sharp & Dohme Ltd v Sigma Pharmaceuticals plc - Prior to their accession to the European Patent Convention, several states did not allow patent protection for pharmaceutical products. To…more

Following on from their previous challenge to the adoption of the unitary patent system on the basis of the concept of enhanced cooperation, and as eventually dismissed by the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU), Spain…more