Patenting Inventions Based On Unexpected Results!

The legal concepts of obviousness versus unexpected results, particularly in chemistry and pharmaceuticals, are shaping the patenting strategies of certain chemical and pharmaceutical innovation trends. In the Indian context, the unexpected results are key to the grant of many chemical compositions, drug compositions or minor modification patents. Lately, pharmaceutical companies have been seeking patent protection for many innovative drug compositions purely based on unexpected results. But what constitutes an 'unexpected result' for the purpose of an appropriate patent is not an easy question to answer. This also brings to the forefront the need for clinical trial elements that gain importance in thoughtful evaluation of the nonobviousness of patents when confronted by the argument of unexpected results.