ARTICLE
3 January 2025

Remarks On The Decision "Liquid Supply Devices" Of The German Court Of Justice

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Finnegan, Henderson, Farabow, Garrett & Dunner, LLP

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The assessment of inventive step from a German view requires that the person skilled in the art not only has a motivation to modify or adapt the relevant prior art, but also that there is an appropriate suggestion.
Germany Intellectual Property

The assessment of inventive step from a German view requires that the person skilled in the art not only has a motivation to modify or adapt the relevant prior art, but also that there is an appropriate suggestion or hint towards that claimed subject-matter.

In its decision "Liquid Supply Devices" (Flüssigkeitszufuhrgerät; X ZR 33/22), it was confirmed by the Court that the solution to a technical problem is not obvious merely because the skilled person has the necessary skill and/or expertise to implement appropriate changes to the relevant embodiment of the prior art. In addition, it also requires that the prior art provides a suggestion for changing said art accordingly. This emphasizes the importance to explain suggestions, incentives, or other reasons of the prior art, which motivate the skilled person to consider a specific solution and/or technical feature.

Finnegan Counsel Jonathan J. Wurth summarizes the takeaways from the recent decision.

Read "Keine zwingende Übertragung eines vorteilhaften Elements in andere Vorrichtungen (GRUR Patent 2024, 564)"

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.

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