François Pochart joined August Debouzy in 2011, after having worked as a patent attorney for more than 15 years. Together with Grégoire Desrousseaux he heads a team of patent attorneys who are also engineers, and of lawyers.
François Pochart assists French and foreign clients on patent-related issues – in an advisory role, with opposition proceedings before the European Patent Office and with litigation before the French courts.
François Pochart advises in particular on regulatory issues and issues in connection with supplementary protection certificates (SPCs) and plant protection products.
François Pochart is very active in the EPO litigation (oppositions and appeals), and represents his clients in oral proceedings in Munich or the Hague more than once a month.
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Propriété intellectuelle
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Will the Enlarged Board of Appeal rescue the double patenting practice ?
In 2007, the Enlarged Board of Appeal adopted the principle of the prohibition of double patenting, and this principle was then integrated into the Guidelines. The cases leading to the 2007 decisions were based on divisional applications.
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OP in VICO for OPPO: GO! The agreement of the parties will no longer be required to close the opposition to a European patent by a videoconference hearing.
The recent decision of November 10, 2020 of the President of the European Patent Office (EPO), takes into account the health constraints imposed by the coronavirus over time, at the moment of the rise of its second European wave. In practical terms, this decision implies that for any oral proceedings in opposition scheduled from January 4, 2020 to September 15, 2021, it will be conducted by videoconference without seeking the agreement of the parties. This decision thus systematizes the holding of oral proceedings in opposition by videoconference.
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Pharmaceutical Intellectual Property and Competition Law Review – 1st edition
François Pochart, Mathilde Rauline and Renaud Christol have co-written the French Chapter of the Pharmaceutical Intellectual Property and Competition Law Review (Edition 1).
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Ezetimibe-simvastatin SPC invalid in France for non-compliance with both Articles 3a) and 3c) of Regulation No 469/2009
The Court of appeal of Paris, in a decision on the merits, has ruled that the supplementary protection certificate (“SPC”) covering the combination of ezetimibe and simvastatine is invalidl. The decision was rendered on September 25, 2020, in a case opposing Merck and Teva (free translation available here). This is the first decision in Europe on the merits to be rendered by an appellate court.
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A new damages record in the French pemetrexed case: 28 million euros
The patentee (belonging to the Eli Lilly group) had, during prosecution, amended its claims relating to the use of “antifolates” combined with other compounds to inhibit tumour growth to “pemetrexed” (an antifolate). The EPO examiner raised a 123(2) EPC objection on the term “pemetrexed”, and the claims were granted with the term “pemetrexed disodium” instead of “antifolates
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Research, innovation and industrial property: drivers of the French recovery plan
On 3 September, the French government launched a €100 billion recovery plan aimed at reviving the French economy and face the crisis resulting from the Covid-19 pandemic. Presented by the French Prime Minister as Europe’s "most massive" , this plan is based on 3 priorities: ecology (€30 billion), competitiveness (€34 billion) and cohesion (€36 billion)
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Compulsory licenses granted by public authorities: an application in the Covid-19 crisis in France?
As many laboratories around the world are making every effort to find a treatment for Covid-19 and more clinical trials are conducted, it is worth considering the legal mechanisms that could facilitate the quantitatively and qualitatively sufficient, and financially acceptable, exploitation of patent rights that will prove useful in curbing the epidemic and preventing a new one. In a study published in 2019, WIPO identified 156 countries or territories which provide for the exception regarding compulsory licensing. Such exception allows for the use of a patent without the consent of the owner.
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World Intellectual Property Day 2020: Innovate for a Green Future
The World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) dedicates this Sunday, April 26, 2020 to “green innovation”.
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The Opposition before the French Patent Office
Today is the day of the “launch” of the opposition procedure before the French Patent Office (“Institut National de la Propriété Intellectuelle” or “INPI”). This procedure is a new way to challenge the validity of a French patent, alongside the claim for invalidity.
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Publication of Decree No. 2020-225 of March 6, 2020 on the opposition procedure for French patents and setting of the opposition fee
The decree n°2020-225, taken for the application of the ordinance n°2020-116 which creates a right of opposition to French patents, was published in the Official Journal on March 6, 2020.
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