EU Patent Case Victory Achieved By Merck & Co And SB

Europe's pharmaceutical industry has won a preliminary victory in the European Court of Justice in its battle to block exports of cheap unpatented drugs from Spain and Portugal, reports Merck & Co. An advocate general of the court, Neil Fennelly, issued an opinion last week supporting the argument of Merck and SmithKline Beecham that their patents gave them the right to bar exports.

Given that this opinion is endorsed by the full Luxembourg court, the drugmakers will be able to overcome a setback they suffered last December, when the European Commission refused to allow the European Union governments to take emergency action to block drugs from Spain (Marketletters passim).

"This case is fundamental to the future of the European pharmaceutical industry," said Brian Ager, director general of the European Federation of Pharmaceutical Industries' Associations, adding: "our hope is that the full court will endorse the importance of breaking the nexus between unpatentability and low prices."