SNF Inc. v. Ciba Specialty Chemicals Water
Treatments Limited , 2015 FC 997 SNF commenced an action to impeach Ciba's process patent
that claims rigidifying a material whilst retaining the fluidity of
the material during transfer, a process used on the tailings in the
oil fields around Fort McMurray. A counterclaim for infringement
was settled during the course of the trial. Although the prior art was not found to anticipate the
invention, the Court held the patent to be invalid for obviousness.
This invention was found to be a variation of what was known. It
was also found that it would have been obvious to try to determine
the effective amount of polymer to achieve the necessary outcome
and to discontinue polymer application once overdosing
occurred. Although "rigidification" is a key word in the claims,
the Court noted that there was no definition for it in the patent,
nor was it a term of art. Ultimately the Court came up with its own
definition which was based upon the expert evidence. Using the Court's definition of "rigidification",
the patent's disclosure was found to be sufficient. However, if
the patentee's definition, "rigidification occurs when one
obtains the result one desires" were used, the Court would
have held the patent to be insufficient. The patent was not found to be overbroad, contrary to the
argument that the inventor had never been to the oil sands so the
invention's purported applicability for use in the oil sands
must have been broader than what was invented. In holding the
patent to not be overbroad, the Court described that the invention
has broad application and it was intended for use in several
different industries. The Court found that some of the statements in the patent
disclosure were misleading in that they were made to make the
invention look like something new and different when it was known
that it was not. However, the patent was not found to be invalid
pursuant to section 53 of the Patent Act because the
statements were not considered to be material. A decision upholding the validity of a similar patent by the
Australian Federal Court was commented on, but not followed. The
Australian patent was an innovation patent, a type not existing in
Canada, and the applicable laws and evidence were different in
Canada. Vancouver Community College v. Vancouver
Career College (Burnaby) Inc., 2015 BCSC 1470 Vancouver Community College sued Vancouver Career College for
passing off its trademarks, including the mark VCC. Vancouver
Career College would advertise using VCC in conjunction with its
full name, and this included buying the VCC Google AdWords. Although much evidence was provided to the Court, including
evidence that the TMOB refused to allow the defendant to register
VCCollege.ca as a trade mark citing confusion with the plaintiff,
passing off was ultimately not made out in this case. In terms of internet searching, it was found that a web searcher
is not taken automatically to a website, rather the searcher can
review the search results, click through to a website, then choose
to move forward or perhaps try another website. It was held that the "first impression" does not arise
on a Google AdWords search at an earlier time than when the
searcher reaches a website, and it was found that the searcher
would not be confused by the defendant's website. The Court also noted that a prospective student must attempt to
enroll at the defendant's college in person, attend an
interview, take a tour of the campus, and complete a number of
forms, all of which have the defendant's name printed on them.
Therefore, no basis for confusion was found. Health Canada has published Updates to the
Guidance Document — Post-Notice of Compliance (NOC)
Changes: Safety and Efficacy to reflect Plain Language Labelling
Regulations The content of this article is intended to provide a general
guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought
about your specific circumstances.Patent Cases
Patent claiming the "rigidification" of oil sands
tailings found to be an obvious modification of prior art
Trademark Cases
Vancouver Community College unsuccessful in passing off action
against Vancouver Career College
Other Industry News
ARTICLE
4 September 2015
Patent Claiming The "Rigidification" Of Oil Sands Tailings Found To Be An Obvious Modification Of Prior Art (Intellectual Property Weekly Abstracts Bulletin - Week Of August 31, 2015)
SNF commenced an action to impeach Ciba's process patent that claims rigidifying a material whilst retaining the fluidity of the material during transfer, a process used on the tailings in the oil fields around Fort McMurray.