Life Sciences Outlook 2026 - Litigation, Investigations, Privilege

Key points

• Following a Supreme Court decision last year, the Irish courts are applying stricter temporal benchmarks in applications to strike out proceedings for delay, providing a further strategic litigation option for companies defending long-running or inactive claims.
• The CJEU has recently confirmed that limitation periods under the Product Liability Directive run from the date of awareness of damage, not from when a condition stabilises or becomes permanent, and has upheld the ten-year longstop — providing welcome certainty for companies facing claims involving progressive or latent injury.
• The HPRA reports a 180% increase in the number of falsified or illegal medicines detained in 2025 compared to the previous year.