Jurisdiction(s):
Ireland

Moderna v Pfizer/BioNTech in the English High Court: pandemic patent pledge, implied licences, added matter and damages in COVID-19 mRNA dispute, with sector-wide implications

Published on: 29 February 2024

Published by a Law360 reporter

Legal News

Article summary

Pfizer and BioNTech maintain they reasonably depended on Moderna’s assurances that it would not litigate and argued the company had extended implicit licences to others. In 2020, as pharmaceutical companies rushed to find a route out of the global health emergency, Moderna Inc declared it would not assert its patents over a coronavirus vaccine whilst the pandemic persisted. It said it wished not to discourage other businesses from developing their own jabs. Two years on, after vaccines had been created and broadly deployed by Pfizer and BioNTech, Moderna revised its pledge, stating it expected respect for its intellectual property in middle-income states without supply constraints. Shortly afterwards, Moderna filed an infringement action against the two competitors. Charlie French, a senior associate at Bristows LLP, noted there will be many questions about whether Pfizer and BioNTech could rely on that commitment and whether the 2022 update was effective, adding that the wording is unclear. Moderna has also said it is not pursuing damages for any period before March 2022, when it revised its statement. The US pharmaceutical and biotech firm is likewise not seeking an injunction. Its claim therefore targets alleged infringement only after the March 2022 update took place...

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