A French manufacturing group of household appliances had its patent for a hair dryer and a hair straightener annulled. A competitor demanded a judicial order for annulment of the granted patent. The allegation was that those products were not invented.

What is a patent nullity action?

It is a legal process aimed at declaring that the administrative act of the Brazilian Patent and Trademark Office - INPI, which granted the patent, is null, because the invention protected by the patent is not in accordance with Industrial Property Law.

Why is this case important?

The claim was judged groundless, in favor of the French group. The patent for hair dryer and hair straightener continued to be valid.

The acting judge accepted the argument that the objective of annulling the patent met the requirements of inventive activity, with substantial differences when compared to the supposed priorities presented by the plaintiff.