Gilead Launches Patent Challenge Against Chinese Military Institute Over Remdesivir at Unified Patent Court
核心洞察
Gilead Sciences has initiated legal actions at the Unified Patent Court and European Patent Office to challenge a patent held by China's Academy of Military Medical Sciences that threatens remdesivir sales.
The disputed European patent EP 3 854 403 protects the use of substituted aminopropionate compounds (搜索) for treating SARS-CoV-2 (搜索) infections, potentially blocking Gilead's COVID-19 (搜索) drug Veklury.
The pharmaceutical giant is pursuing a dual strategy with both UPC revocation proceedings and EPO opposition to expedite patent invalidation, potentially receiving a decision by next summer.
Gilead Sciences has launched a comprehensive legal challenge against a Chinese military research institute's patent that poses a potential threat to sales of its COVID-19 (搜索) treatment remdesivir. The US pharmaceutical giant filed simultaneous actions at the Unified Patent Court (UPC) and the European Patent Office (EPO) targeting a patent held by Beijing's Academy of Military Medical Sciences.
Patent Dispute Centers on COVID-19 Treatment
The contested European patent EP 3 854 403, recently granted by the EPO with unitary effect, protects the use of substituted aminopropionate compounds (搜索) in treating SARS-CoV-2 (搜索) infections. This patent coverage directly threatens Gilead's remdesivir, marketed under the brand name Veklury, which the company developed as a broad-spectrum antiviral medication originally intended for Ebola virus disease (搜索) and Marburg virus infections (搜索) before becoming a primary post-infection treatment for COVID-19 (搜索) during the pandemic.
Dual Legal Strategy for Rapid Resolution
Gilead has adopted a two-pronged approach to challenge the patent's validity. The company filed an opposition at the EPO immediately after the patent was granted in early June, with Chris Hoggett from UK IP firm Carpmaels & Ransford handling the opposition proceedings.
Simultaneously, Gilead initiated revocation proceedings at the UPC's Milan central division, seeking to invalidate the patent across UPC territory under case ID ACT_29152/2025. The UPC action is being led by an international team from Hoyng ROKH Monegier, including German partner Christine Kanz, Amsterdam partner Peter van Schijndel, and Paris-based Amandine Metier, along with team members Akiva Friedman, Moritz Lohr, Théophile Rebuffel, Carolin Wollschlaeger, and Lisa-Marie Rauschendorfer.
Accelerated Timeline Expected
If the UPC's central division adheres to the court's established tight deadlines, Gilead could receive a decision on the patent's validity as early as next summer. This timeline would be considerably faster than the EPO Opposition Division process, which typically takes longer to reach resolution.
The UPC case will be heard in English before presiding judge Andrea Postiglione, with Dutch judge Marije Knijff serving as the second judge. The Academy of Military Medical Sciences (搜索)' legal representation at the UPC has not yet been disclosed, though Anne Francastel from French IP law firm Lavoix handled the original EP 403 application.
Growing Pharmaceutical Use of UPC
This case exemplifies the pharmaceutical industry's increasing utilization of the UPC for patent revocation actions. Since the court's launch, several major pharmaceutical companies have pursued similar strategies, including Astellas's challenge to patents held by Healios (搜索) and the University of Osaka (搜索), Sanofi's action against Amgen's Praluent patent, and Pfizer's attack on a GSK patent for an RSV vaccine.
While pharmaceutical companies have historically shown restraint in filing infringement suits with the UPC, this trend appears to be shifting. Recent developments include GSK's multiple lawsuits against Moderna, BioNTech, and Pfizer over mRNA patents, and Merz's August lawsuit against Viatris in Paris concerning an SPC for the multiple sclerosis (搜索) drug fampridine, marketed as Fampyra.