UV (non)protection: Commentary On EPO Decision T 2275/18

We all know that it is important to protect our skin from the sun, but can we obtain protection for our suncream? The recently published decision T 2275/18 from the European Patent Office considers the extent to which a method of using a composition that provides UV protection can be patentable.

It is well established that methods of treatment by surgery or therapy are excluded from patentability in Europe. In this decision, the Board of Appeal consider whether a method of applying a composition that provides UV protection is always inherently therapeutic and therefore not patentable according to Article 53(c) EPC.

The case concerns an appeal filed by an opponent against a decision of the opposition division to reject claim 14 of the main request of EP2934458. The patent in question relates to an active mixture containing butyl methoxydibenzoylmethane (BMDM), a known UVA screening agent.