BASF’s herbicide patent invalidated by China’s Jiangxi Tianyu Chemical

2021.09.28-29   Hangzhou, China 

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China National Intellectual Property Administration (CNIPA) issued a document announcing a decision on the request for invalidation under ref 51413, on August 23, 2021. 

According to the decision, Jiangxi Tianyu Chemical (subsidiary of CAC Nantong Chemical) invalidated a herbicide patent of BASF Europe under patent number ZL200880008535.6, covering the invention patent of “2-(2-Chloro-4-(methylsulfonyl)-3-((2,2,2-trifluoroethoxy) methyl) benzoyl) cyclohexane-1,3-dione crystal form”. 

On March 14, 2008, German chemical giant BASF had filed for a herbicide invention patent involving tembotrione, with the patent number ZL200880008535.6. The invention patent was authorized and announced in 2015. BASF is understood to have patented this technology in 18 countries.

One should note that Bayer has developed tembotrione, a triketone, which is a new compound based on sulcotrione added with trifluoroethoxyl, being a 4-hydroxyphenyl-pyruvate dioxygenase (HPPD) inhibitor. The basic patent CN1269800C of tembotrione already expired on September 8, 2019.

On March 1, 2021, Jiangxi Tianyu Chemical Co., Ltd filed a request to invalidate this patent. On June 22, 2021, the collegial panel held an oral hearing on the case. After trial, they ruled that patent claims 1-9 did not possess the inventive step under Article 22.3 of the Patent Law and were declared void in whole. The collegial panel will not review and comment on other reasons the applicant forwarded for the invalidity.