In an effort to lend further support to the expedited development of COVID-19-related vaccines and therapeutics (see Covid-19 Prioritized Examination Pilot Program), the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) has implemented a deferred-fee provisional patent application pilot program whereby applicants filing under 35 U.S.C. 111(b) can elect to defer…
When submitting a new drug application (“NDA”) with the FDA, an applicant (or branded company) is required to file a list of patents that cover the drug product. These patents will be listed in the FDA’s Orange Book upon approval of the drug for commercial sale. Patents that are eligible…
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) maintains two searchable online databases for approved products: the Purple Book (approved licensed biological products) and the Orange Book (approved drug products). The Orange Book provides details about an approved drug product, including the patents covering the approved drug product and the expiration dates…
A new draft amendment to Chinese Patent Law was submitted to the National People’s Congress Standing Committee on June 28, 2020. Key provisions include the establishment of patent term adjustment (PTA) caused by delays in the patent office and patent term extension (PTE). Under the new draft amendment, a Patentee…
The United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) is accepting requests for prioritized examination or “fast track” of patent applications that claim a product or process subject to FDA approval for COVID-19 use, without the payment of additional fees. The USPTO will advance accepted patent applications out of turn, aiming…
Life science companies developing new therapeutics – both small molecule and biologic – know that obtaining long patent term for their products is a key driver of valuation and revenue. A particular challenge in this respect is minimizing the loss of patent term during drug development. Fierce competition in the…
To determine when your (or your competitor’s) patent expires, first identify the correct filing date of the patent application. A U.S. utility patent (filed on or after June 8, 1995) expires 20 years from the earliest filing date of the patent. If the patent claims priority to an earlier patent…
