Aldi is believed to be the latest retailer to be involved in a legal dispute at the Unified Patent Court (UPC). The pharmaceutical company, Pohl Boskamp, claims that Aldi’s lice treatment, Vitalis, infringes its patent (EP1993363) for NYDA®, an over-the-counter lice treatment. Aldi’s Vitalis product appears to have been sold for around a third of the price of NYDA®, but appears to have been removed from its online store.
The UPC, launched in June 2023, is a court system common to currently 18 EU member states with a Court of First Instance that includes local and regional divisions, a central division and a Court of Appeal in Luxembourg. It provides a centralised forum for patent litigation across the participating EU countries, allowing companies to determine claims relating to the infringement or invalidity of their European (or Unitary) patents across multiple participating jurisdictions in a single case. Pohl Boskamp filed its case against Aldi on 20 September 2024 before the Mannheim local division of the UPC (hearing date not set yet).
If the court finds that Aldi has infringed Pohl Boskamp’s patent, it could issue pan-European injunctions, potentially stopping the sale of Vitalis in several countries. This case may encourage other companies to pursue retailers through proceedings at the UPC, given the significant impact of UPC judgments.
For more information about the UPC, Gowling WLG has a comprehensive hub of resources, which can be found on our website.
