Biontech versus Curevac: Court hears vaccine dispute

Pharmaceuticals - Biontech versus Curevac: Court hears vaccine dispute

The Federal Patent Court in Munich will hear the dispute between the two Covid-19 vaccine manufacturers Biontech and Curevac before Christmas. The third senate has scheduled the hearing for December 19, as the court announced on Tuesday.

The plaintiff is Biontech. The Mainz-based company wants to have a patent held by its Tübingen-based competitor Curevac declared null and void. Curevac had applied for the disputed patent at the European Patent Office in 2007. The authority granted the patent in 2010 and it is valid in 20 countries. However, the Federal Patent Court can only declare patents invalid with effect for Germany.

The Munich proceedings are only part of the dispute between the two companies. Curevac, in turn, has sued Biontech before the Düsseldorf Regional Court.

Notice from the Federal Patent Court

Read also:

• European MPs condemn anti-Semitic monuments in Moldova

1. Biontech, hailing from Mainz, is challenging a patent held by its rival Curevac in Rhineland-Palatinate, seeking its declaration as invalid.
2. The hearing for this patent dispute between Biontech and Curevac, two prominent Covid-19 vaccine manufacturers, has been scheduled by the Federal Patent Court in Munich, Bavaria, for December 19.
3. Despite this court case in Munich, Curevac has also initiated legal action against Biontech in Düsseldorf, Baden-Württemberg.
4. Though the patent dispute between Curevac and Biontech is of significant interest in Germany, the disputed patent is valid in 20 countries worldwide.
5. The COVID-19 vaccine development processes have seen intense competition between German pharma companies such as Biontech and Curevac, with Munich and Tübingen serving as key hubs.

Source: www.stern.de