European Patent Office Rules Vaccine Developer CureVac's Amended Patent Valid, Stock Jumps

CureVac N.V. (NASDAQ:CVAC) on Thursday said the European Patent Office (EPO) confirmed the validity of CureVac’s European patent EP 3 708 668 B1 subject to amendments to specify the scope of protection.

The opposition division largely dismissed the opposition originally filed by BioNTech SE (NASDAQ:BNTX) in April 2023, challenging the patent’s validity and maintaining the patent in amended form.

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The ruling represents a major milestone in the ongoing patent dispute between CureVac and BioNTech in Germany. The legal spat involves six intellectual property rights.

Following Thursday’s ruling, the Regional Court Düsseldorf will decide whether the patent in its amended form has been infringed.

An infringement hearing is scheduled for July 1, 2025. A positive infringement decision would trigger proceedings to assess damages in the same court.

EP 3 708 668 B1 describes a foundational invention of CureVac, called split poly-A tail technology. It enhances medical efficacy by improving the expression of the protein encoded on an mRNA construct.

Last April, Canadian biotech company Acuitas Therapeutics and CureVac settled Acuitas’ lawsuit over credit for inventions tied to COVID-19 vaccines.

Acuitas told the court that CureVac omitted its scientists from patent applications for lipid nanoparticle technology used in messenger RNA-based vaccines after collaborating to develop the technology during the COVID-19 pandemic.

This move would allow Acuitas to license them without CureVac’s consent. 

In December 2023, a German court invalidated a patent central to CureVac’s lawsuit against BioNTech related to seeking fair compensation for infringement of a portfolio of CureVac’s intellectual property rights utilized in Comirnaty, BioNTech, and Pfizer Inc’s (NYSE:PFE) mRNA COVID-19 vaccine.

Price Action: CVAC stock is up 17.5% at $3.29 during the premarket session at the last check Friday.

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