November 28, 2024

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Hugel logo (Hugel)

A patent regarding Medytox’s botulinum toxin product can be embroiled in another legal dispute as its domestic rival Hugel filed for a patent invalidation in the US, according to industry sources on Friday.

The patent, which could be considered for invalidation at the Patent Trial and Appeal Board in the US, concerns a method for isolating Botulinum toxin from solution. Medytox applied for the patent in 2017, and the patent was issued in May last year.

Hugel, however, argues that the patent includes nothing but a technique that is commonly used in BTX production. Hugel added that holding such a widely used technique as a patent could prevent other players from entering the market thus hinder the industry’s overall growth.

It is not the first time that Medytox has become involved in a patent invalidation trial.

In 2019, Switzerland-based international pharmaceutical company Galderma filed a petition to the PTAB, requesting a review of claims in a Medytox’s patent, titled “Long Lasting Effect of New Botulinum Toxin Formulation.”

In 2021, the PTAB ruled that a Medytox patent for its wrinkle treatment should not have been granted. Medytox proposed amendments to its patent claims, but the board ruled that they were not patentable.

Meanwhile, if the petition is accepted by the PTAB, the legal battle between Medytox and Hugel would enter upon a new phase.

Medytox and Hugel have been already involved in a dispute as Medytox filed a complaint with the US International Trade Commission against Hugel, accusing it of stealing its BTX strain, in March last year.

By Shim Woo-hyun (ws@heraldcorp.com)