Introduction: Therapeutic antibodies have grown to become an important product class within the biopharmaceutical market. A prerequisite to their commercialization is adequate patent protection. Disclosure requirements and the types of claims available in different jurisdictions can impact the scope of protection available for antibodies.

Areas covered:

A comparative review of statutory bases, patent office practices and selected decisions in Canada, the United States and the United Kingdom related to disclosure requirements is provided.

Expert opinion:

Differences in disclosure requirements exist in different jurisdictions which can impact the type of claims obtained and their survival when attacked in litigation. Including a wide variety of claim types is a key strategy to ensuring therapeutic antibodies are adequately protected. Method of use claims may provide advantages and broader protection in some circumstances and should also be considered.

This article was previously published in Taylor & Francis Online 09 Mar 2017

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.