CELEX: 62013CA0577
Language: en
Date: 2015-03-12 00:00:00
Title: Case C-577/13: Judgment of the Court (Eighth Chamber) of 12 March 2015 (request for a preliminary ruling from the High Court of Justice (Chancery Division) — United Kingdom) — Actavis Group PTC EHF, Actavis UK Ltd v Boehringer Ingelheim Pharma GmbH & Co. KG (Reference for a preliminary ruling — Medicinal products for human use — Regulation (EC) No 469/2009 — Article 3 — Supplementary protection certificate — Conditions for obtaining such a certificate — Medicinal products containing in whole or in part the same active ingredient — Medicinal products placed on the market in succession — Combination of active ingredients — Active ingredient previously marketed in the form of a medicinal product with a single active ingredient — Conditions for obtaining several certificates on the basis of the same patent — Modification of the active ingredients of a basic patent)

4.5.2015   
            
            
               EN
            
            
               Official Journal of the European Union
            
            
               C 146/4
            
         Judgment of the Court (Eighth Chamber) of 12 March 2015 (request for a preliminary ruling from the High Court of Justice (Chancery Division) — United Kingdom) — Actavis Group PTC EHF, Actavis UK Ltd v Boehringer Ingelheim Pharma GmbH & Co. KG
   (Case C-577/13) (1)
   
   ((Reference for a preliminary ruling - Medicinal products for human use - Regulation (EC) No 469/2009 - Article 3 - Supplementary protection certificate - Conditions for obtaining such a certificate - Medicinal products containing in whole or in part the same active ingredient - Medicinal products placed on the market in succession - Combination of active ingredients - Active ingredient previously marketed in the form of a medicinal product with a single active ingredient - Conditions for obtaining several certificates on the basis of the same patent - Modification of the active ingredients of a basic patent))
   (2015/C 146/04)
   Language of the case: English
   
      Referring court
   
   High Court of Justice (Chancery Division)
   
      Parties to the main proceedings
   
   
      Applicants: Actavis Group PTC EHF, Actavis UK Ltd
   
      Defendant: Boehringer Ingelheim Pharma GmbH & Co. KG
   
      Operative part of the judgment
   
   Article 3(a) and (c) of Regulation (EC) No 469/2009 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 16 May 2009 concerning the supplementary protection certificate for medicinal products must be interpreted as meaning that, where a basic patent includes a claim to a product comprising an active ingredient which constitutes the sole subject-matter of the invention, for which the holder of that patent has already obtained a supplementary protection certificate, as well as a subsequent claim to a product comprising a combination of that active ingredient and another substance, that provision precludes the holder from obtaining a second supplementary protection certificate for that combination.
   
      (1)  OJ C 31, 1.2.2014.