NJOY v VMR Products (UPC_CFI_307/2023)

Decision date:

29 November 2024

Court

Paris CD

Patent

EP 2 875 740

Full decision available here:

Osborne Clarke summary

This decision concerned another revocation claim brought by NJOY against a VMR patent also relating to electronic cigarettes, which it alleged lacked inventive step.
In this case the revocation claim failed, with the Paris CD holding that the patent was novel and inventive. In assessing inventive step, the Paris CD was clear that the problem-solution approach is only one possible way of assessing the issue. There is no legal rule that dictates it must be applied, and it does not restrict the application of other approaches. In this case, the court followed the suggestion of the claimant and made its assessment based on different starting points, which it said was "more complete and objective". Based on this approach, the court held that there was not a lack of inventive step.
In considering what amounts to common general knowledge, the court stated that it was information that was commonly known to the skilled person from written sources or practical experience in the relevant field available at the priority date. This could include knowledge that is directly available from familiar sources of information relating to that technical field but did not necessarily include all publicly available knowledge as this may not have been general and common.

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