Welcome to our blog dedicated to Life Sciences. We report on EU and national regulatory, compliance, intellectual property and transactional developments in the sector. We focus on (bio)pharmaceuticals and medical technologies, and also cover food and beverages, cosmetics and other healthcare products.
German courts confirm sales bans on CBD containing food
16 December 2019 - Posted by: Eda Zhuleku
According to the latest version of the EU Novel Food Catalogue, EU regulators consider that CBD-containing foods and dietary supplements are classified as novel foods. The Novel Foods Regulation (EU) 2015/2283 defines as “novel” any food which has not been used for “human consumption” to a significant degree within the EU before May 1997. As › Read More
CJEU: cannabis trade mark is contrary to public policy
12 December 2019 - Posted by: Beverley Potts
An application for the above trade mark covering food and beverage items has been rejected by the EU General Court. The court confirmed the EUIPO’s previous decision that the mark is contrary to public policy for the following reasons: The sign contains a stylised depiction of the cannabis plant, which is the media symbol for › Read More
French Administrative Supreme Court paves way for medical practitioner advertising
04 December 2019 - Posted by: Eveline Van Keymeulen
On 6 November 2019, the French Council of State, the Administrative Supreme Court, granted the request to annul the implicit Minister of Health’s refusal to revoke the Articles of the Public Health Code (French language) that prohibited the use of any advertising by dentists and dental surgeons (Decision of 6 November 2019 docket 420225) (French › Read More
Cannabis – What is being patented?
29 November 2019 - Posted by: Marc Döring
The past few years have seen a global trend towards the liberalisation of cannabis policies, with cannabis becoming legalised in numerous countries and US states for recreational and/or medical use. Cannabis is currently authorised for medicinal use in more than 25 countries, including Australia, Canada, Germany, the Netherlands and the UK. And while recreational use › Read More
27 November 2019 - Posted by: Jacqueline Bore
The Medical Devices Regulation, the “MDR”, which comes largely into force in May 2020, will introduce significant changes to the way in which software used in a medical context will be regulated in the European Union. The medical devices industry has been eagerly awaiting additional guidance on how these new provisions are likely to be › Read More