Compliance with the written description requirement in chemical and pharmaceutical patents
This is an Insight article, written by a selected partner as part of IAM's co-published content. Read more on Insight
The written description requirement in the chemical and pharmaceutical industries is based on a unique, everevolving factual situation necessitating the application of what would otherwise be a technology-neutral statute. In light of the range of issues presented, drafting, prosecution and enforcement strategies have become more complicated, with the courts providing a rather ambiguous guide as to what is sufficient.