2025-01-22 - CD Paris - NJOY v. VMR Products - UPC_CFI_310/2023
- Aktenzeichen:
- UPC_CFI_310/2023
- Datum:
- Spruchkörper:
- Court of First Instance - Paris (FR) Central Division - Seat
- Art:
- Application Order
- Parteien:
- NJOY Netherlands B.V. v. VMR Products LLC
Kernaussage: The Paris CD partially revoked EP '453 (vaporizer) in a revocation action by NJOY against VMR Products (Juul subsidiary).
2025-01-22 - CD Paris - NJOY
v.
VMR Products - UPC_CFI_310/2023
notable
The Paris CD partially revoked EP '453 (vaporizer) in a revocation action by NJOY against VMR Products (Juul subsidiary). Independent claim 1 lacked inventive step over Pan combined with Weigensberg and/or Trescher, as the only distinguishing feature (charging contacts at first end) was obvious. All eight auxiliary requests failed: AR I-II were inadmissible as late R. 30.2 amendments constituting a change of strategy; AR III-V did not overcome the invalidity; AR VI-VIII were rejected for lack of clarity under Art. 84 EPC. However, the court upheld the patent on dependent claims 6, 7, 8 (magnets proximate to charging contacts) under Art. 65(3) UPCA, finding the defendant's general request to maintain dependent claims sufficiently clear even without specifying which claims. The court held that the problem-solution approach is not mandatory and that assessment based on multiple starting points is equally permissible.
Nichtigkeitsgründe
Art. 138 EPCInventive Step
Partially invalid (this ground)Art. 56 EPC · Art. 138(1)(a) EPC
“Independent claim 1 lacked inventive step over Pan + Weigensberg/Trescher [101, 110]. Dependent claims 2-5, 9-11 also lacked inventive step. However, dependent claims 6, 7, 8 (magnets proximate to charging contacts) were found to involve an inventive step [157, 169, 175].”
Clarity
Patent invalid (this ground)Art. 84 EPC · derivative
“Auxiliary requests VI-VIII rejected for lack of clarity under Art. 84 EPC — the term 'free-standing fluid' was found unclear and the defendant provided no definition or useful arguments [134-137].”