Guccio Gucci S.p.A. v. AGFA NV, UPC Court of Appeal, 21 October 2026, Case nos. UPC-CoA-582/2025 UPC-CoA-594/2025, UPC-CoA-590/2025 UPC-CoA-595/2025, UPC-CoA-591/2025 UPC-CoA-596/2025, UPC-CoA-592/2025 UPC-CoA-597/2025, UPC-CoA-593/2025 UPC-CoA-602/2025
Headnotes
1. A manufacturing method of a publicly used product is made available to the public by use pursuant to Art. 54(2) EPC if, at the relevant date, the person skilled in the art could establish the method without undue burden by analysing the product’s composition. There is no support in the EPC for an additional requirement that the skilled person would need particular reasons for analysing the product.
2. Where a publicly available product discloses information which is relevant to the novelty of a claimed manufacturing method, the disclosure must be such that the skilled person can use the claimed method on the basis of their common general knowledge. Reproducibility of features which are not part of the claimed invention is not required
A copy of the Decision can be read here.
