Indian patentability and the Novartis decision
- Section 3(d) adds a patentability test for new forms of known substances
- The 2005 patent changes balanced TRIPS obligations and public-health concerns
- Novartis interpreted efficacy for medicines as therapeutic efficacy
- Increased bioavailability alone does not prove enhanced therapeutic efficacy
- The Novartis decision did not bar all incremental pharmaceutical inventions
- Mere discovery of naturally occurring life or substances is excluded from Indian patentability
- Indian patent law excludes specified treatment processes
- The plant-and-animal exclusion does not itself exclude microorganisms