Rare diseases - are there sufficient incentives to develop treatments?

No items found.
January 1, 1970
#
Life

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

Late Applications for Provisional Measures Refused for Lack of Urgency
14 July 2026
In Ericsson v ASUSTeK, the Milan Local Division refused a provisional measures application filed 21 months into the case, finding continuing infringement and rising losses alone do not establish urgency.
UPC revokes provisional injunction on motorbike helmet intercoms system
29 June 2026
The UPC Local Division Milan revoked Cardo's provisional injunction against Reso, ruling its helmet intercom products fall outside the scope of EP4240194, neither literally nor by equivalence.
Preliminary objection on jurisdiction partially successful – UPC clarifies requirements of anchor-defendant jurisdiction for non-UPC territories
25 June 2026
The Hamburg Local Division let Nixu pursue US-based Infoblox in the UPC for Germany, France and Finland, but threw out the UK claim. To reach a non-UPC territory through an anchor defendant, a claimant must plead joint infringement there.