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Paris Appeal Court - SANOFI-AVENTIS & al v. NOVARTIS & al


Decision date

2012-12-11

Decision No.

11/20113

Nature

Patent

Jurisdiction

Paris Appeal Court

Parties

SANOFI-AVENTIS & al v/ NOVARTIS & al



The Companies SANOFI-AVENTIS FRANCE, SANOFI WINTHROP INDUSTRIE and ZENTIVA KS (hereinafter SANOFI companies) were represented by Arnaud CASALONGA, lawyer assisted by Gérard Dossmann, Patent Attorney.

The NOVARTIS Companies, considering that offering, putting on the market, use, importation and possession by SANOFI of the pharmaceutical specialties comprising Valsartan in combination with HCT constitute acts of infringement of SPC No. 97C0050. The NOVARTIS companies filed a complaint on October 27, 2011, requesting that the President of the Tribunal de Grande Instance of Paris orders a series of provisional measures against the companies SANOFI, without hearing the defendant.

The President of the Tribunal de Grande Instance of Paris partially granted the requests of NOVARTIS

On October 28, 201, SANOFI requested the withdrawal of the order and the lifting of all provisional measures of said order.

By injunction issued on October 31, 2011, the President of the Tribunal de Grande Instance of Paris upheld the order of 27 October 2011 in all its provisions, with the exception of those relating to the obligation to disclose information on the origin and distribution networks of the pharmaceutical compositions.

SANOFI filed an appeal against this decision.

The Court of Appeal of Paris found that:

  • The documents submitted to the Court did not sufficiently prove the imminent commercialization of the products;
  • The issuance of an order without hearing the defendant was not justified since an accelerated procedure was available;
  • The "irreparable harm" alleged by NOVARTIS was not irreparable and not sufficient to grant ex parte an order for provisional measures;
  • And consequently the reasons supporting the request to authorize an ex-parte order, were neither serious nor sufficient;

Consequently, the Court of Appeal of Paris, by judgment of 11 December 2012 confirmed by the Supreme Court on September 16, 2014, retracted the order of October 27, 2011, dismissed all the claims of Novartis and ordered the payment to SANOFI of € 60,000 in compensation of their expenses.