“Medical Treatment Method” Pursuant to the Patent Act

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“MEDICALTREATMENTMETHOD”PURSUANTTOTHEPATENTACT

ZhenWong*

LEGERROBICRICHARD,L.L.P.
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In1970,inTennesseeEastmanv.CommissionerofPatents(1970),62C.P.R.
117,theCommissionerofPatentsestablishedthatamethodofmedical
treatmentwasnotincludedinthedefinitionofan”invention”asdefinedby
thePatentAct,and,consequently,wasnotpatentable.Untilrecently,this
decisionhadgenerallybeeninterpreted,bytheprofessionalsinthefield,as
excludingfromthedefinitionoftheword”invention”anymethodtotreat
eitherananimaloraperson.However,inthedecisionofRe:Application
GeneralHospitalCorporation,renderedbytheCommissionerofPatentsin
1996,theCommissionerhasbroughtcertainnuancesandprecisiontothe
definitionofamethodofmedicaltreatment.Inthisdecision,itwasstated
thatamethodofmedicaltreatmentisanymethodwhichaimsatcuringa
pathologicalcondition.Therefore,anymethodwhichwouldnotaimat
curing,alleviating,orpreventingadiseaseorrestoringhealthwouldnotbe
consideredbythePatentOfficeasamedicaltreatmentmethodinitsstrict
meaning.

TheCommissioneraddedthat,inordertodeterminethenatureofamethod,
onemustfirstdecidewhetherthemethodaimsattreatinganaturalcondition
ratherthanapathologicalone.Thus,inthisparticularcase,itwasestablished
thatpregnancyisanaturalbiologicalphenomenonandthatthereforea
contraceptivemethodwasexcludedfromthedefinitionofamedical
treatmentmethod,inasmuchascontraceptionaimsattreatinganatural
conditionasopposedtoapathologicalone.

Secondly,theprincipaluseofthemethodatissuemustbedetermined.In
otherwords,evenifthemethodatissuemaybeusedfortherapeuticends,
theprincipalobjectofthemethodmustbeestablishedbeforeconcluding
thatthemethodisinfactamethodofmedicaltreatment.Thus,inlightofthis
decision,itnowseemspossibletoobtainpatentprotectionforamethodof

©CIPS,1999.
*OfLEGERROBICRICHARD
,L.L.P.,amultidisciplinaryfirmoflawyers,andpatentand
trademarkagents.PublishedintheSummer1999issue(Vol.3,No.3)issueofourNewsletter.
Publication068.022E.

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treatingapersonorananimal,ifthismethoddoesnotaimprimarilyat
preventingorcuringapathologicalcondition.

Itisworthmentioningthatinothercountries,includingEngland,where
methodsofcontraceptionareconsideredtobepatentable,asimilar
definitionwasgiventomethodsofmedicaltreatment.Formoreinformation
onthistopic,pleasecontactZhenWongfromourfirm.

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