Advocate General Kokott issued her opinion last week in the preliminary ruling
referral from the UK Competition Appeal Tribunal (CAT). The CAT
proceeding is itself an appeal against an infringement finding
against a number of companies (except one, IVAX which is now part
of TEVA which received a 'No Grounds for Action'
letter).
AG Kokott finds that an agreement to settle a patent dispute may
constitute a restriction of competition by object or by effect and
that entering into such an agreement may be an abuse of a dominant
position. This is in line with the General Court's recent
judgments in Perindopril and Lundbeck, but her views diverge on
market definition where she seems to side with the CAT on a narrow,
molecule level, definition.
