IBSA Institut Biochimique, S.A. v. Teva Pharmaceuticals USA, Inc. (Fed. Cir. 2020)
- Seth S. Kim
IBSA’s US Patent 7,723,390 matured from a US Application that claimed priority to an Italian Application, and claimed a thyroid medication in the form of a soft elastic capsule with a shell containing a liquid or half-liquid inner phase, where the term “half-liquid” was a literal translation of Italian “semiliquido”. Fed. Cir. ruled that “half-liquid” is indefinite because the plain meaning of the claim, the specification, the prosecution history, and external evidence for “half-liquid” did not inform those skilled in the art about the scope of the invention with reasonable certainty.
This seminar will review IBSA’s patent claim at issue, briefly explore the decisions in the District Court and the Federal Circuit, and discuss IBSA’s subsequent appeal to the Supreme Court and other attempts to remedy the invalidity of IBSA’s patent.