The EU Commission investigates for the first time a case relating to divisional patent filing and litigation strategies in the pharmaceutical sector (Teva)

On 4 March 2021 the EU Commission announced it has launched a formal investigation into possible anti-competitive conduct by pharmaceutical company Teva in relation to its blockbuster drug Copaxone, which is used in the treatment of multiple sclerosis. The patent for the active ingredient in the drug, glatiramer acetate, expired in 2015, making it possible for generic versions of the drug to enter the market and compete with Teva’s drug Copaxone. The Commission is investigating whether certain conduct by Teva – strategic filing and withdrawing of divisional patents and accompanying litigation as well as a communications campaign against competing products – has resulted in delaying market entry and uptake of competing generic drugs and therefore amounts to an abuse of dominant position