Rare diseases - are there sufficient incentives to develop treatments?

No items found.
January 1, 1970
No items found.

To mark Rare Disease Day 2012, Darren Smyth's latest IPKat post has a topical theme.

Darren highlights the pharmaceutical industry's reluctance to develop treatments for rare diseases where there is little prospect of financial gain, and wonders whether the patent system itself could provide incentives in these cases.

Recent Case Reports

Transfer of costs application from Court of Appeal to Court of First Instance rejected
22 April 2026
The UPC Court of Appeal ruled that it lacks jurisdiction to assess costs applications and confirmed they must be filed at the Court of First Instance, rejecting a transfer request in Rematec v Europe Forestry.
Revocation of an independent claim does not automatically affect the validity of unchallenged independent claims
21 April 2026
In Emporia v Seoul Viosys, the UPC Central Division confirmed that the revocation of an independent claim does not automatically affect the validity of unchallenged claims. The decision underscores the importance of challenging all relevant claims where full patent revocation is sought.
Seriously deficient disclosure process not sufficient to reopen costs order - Cabo v MGA
08 April 2026
A High Court decision highlighting the consequences of inadequate disclosure searches under PD57AD and reaffirming that costs orders are final, even where later failures come to light.