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EPO’s top board weighs solar cell patent dispute over prior art scope

By Inbar Preiss ( March 12, 2025, 17:01 GMT | Insight) -- The EPO’s Enlarged Board of Appeal heard arguments today on whether a commercially available product qualifies as prior art if its exact composition cannot be fully analyzed and reproduced. The case stems from Borealis AG’s challenge to Mitsui Chemicals’ patent for a solar cell encapsulation material. Borealis contends that once a product is publicly sold, it should automatically be considered prior art, while Mitsui Chemicals argues that prior art must be fully analyzable and reproducible.Legal representatives for chemical manufacturers appeared before the European Patent Office’s highest legal experts on the Enlarged Board of Appeal today to argue whether a commercially available product should qualify as prior art....

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