Intellectual Property Newsletter | June 2025

This IP newsletter covers categories of updates relating to Legal Updates, Industry Spotlight, Case Studies and Precedents, Practical Insights for IP Professionals, Upcoming Events and Webinars, and Spotlight on Innovation.

Intellectual Property (IP) Rights Updates

1. UPC and EPO diverge on inventive step: lessons from Amgen's PCSK9 patent battle

The dispute between Amgen and Sanofi over European patent EP 3 666 797 has brought to light a significant divergence between the Unified Patent Court and the European Patent Office on the issue of inventive step. The UPC, in a decision delivered in July 2024, revoked Amgen's patent on the grounds that the development of PCSK9-inhibiting antibodies would have been an obvious step based on prior knowledge. It held that a skilled person would logically pursue the development of such antibodies using routine methods, given the existing identification of PCSK9 as a valid therapeutic target for lowering LDL cholesterol. This