Region: Turkey

Currently, the Turkish Medicines and Medical Devices Agency does not investigate whether drugs supplied from abroad infringe patent rights. However, a recent case provides useful guidance for the steps to be taken, where such infringement occurs.

19 January 2022

The unequal dissemination of covid-19 vaccines remains controversial, yet while a proposed IP rights waiver might enhance global access to affordable vaccines, it remains unlikely that it would provide a solution to the unequal rollout.

12 January 2022

A district court has gone against the growing practice of rejecting preliminary injunction requests in patent disputes. While the reasoning is that injunctions require a full trial yet, courts have taken to rejecting requests for them without setting a trial date or carrying out any of the relevant examination and evaluation.

03 November 2021

While sending a warning letter to perceived infringers is not a pre-condition to enforcing patent rights under Turkish law, it can be a cost-effective and swift way to resolve disputes. However, brand owners should be aware of the potential negative consequences before putting pen to paper.

13 October 2021

Judges and lawyers should always act in accordance with the rule of law, as highlighted in a recent preliminary injunction decision involving a disputed patent, where a judge made a momentary mistake and provided incorrect guidance.

22 September 2021

Under Turkish case law, clinical trials come under the scope of experimental use of an invention. However, there is a lack of clarity over whether this means that clinical trials of patentable products can be protected by patents.

12 May 2021

The IP court has granted a preliminary injunction to remove a pharmaceutical product from the Foreign Drug List of the Turkish Medicines and Medical Devices Agency. The drug was found to contain an active ingredient that was covered by a company’s patent. This case highlights the fact that the Bolar exemption does not apply to drugs that are part of Turkey’s named patient programme.

14 April 2021

The Istanbul IP Court has handed down its first precautionary injunction for indirect use of a patent. The case, which involves a combination drug patent, sheds much-needed light on Article 86 of the Turkish IP Code.

20 January 2021

The European Patent Convention 138/3 prohibits hurried revocations of European patents at a national level. While Turkish courts previously refused to implement the convention, it looks as if the tide may be turning.

16 December 2020

Featured in IAM Innovation & Invention Yearbook 2021

The debate over finding a concrete legal framework for the enforcement of SEPs was one of the hot IP topics of 2020.

20 November 2020