Status Quo, With A Twist: The SCC Reaffirms, And Reframes, The Medical Method Exclusion

The most hotly anticipated IP decision in 2026 has arrived. The Supreme Court of Canada (SCC) released its decision in Pharmascience v Janssen on July 17, 2026, and it is now the latest SCC authority on patentable subject matter and the leading authority on whether methods of medical treatment are patentable in Canada. This marks the Supreme Court’s first substantive patent decision in nine years.

Background & Decision on Appeal

Janssen owns Canadian Patent No. 2,655,335 (the ’335 Patent), which focuses on a specific dosing regimen for INVEGA SUSTENNA, a treatment for schizophrenia. The ’335 Patent teaches a regimen to achieve an optimum plasma concentration-time profile.

The ’335 Patent contained four types of claims including claims to “vendible products,” (meaning prefilled syringes for use according to the claimed dosing regimens) and claims to the use of a dosage form according to the claimed dosing regimens.