Gillette emerges victorious in German patent dispute
Shaving company Gillette has secured a win in Germany after a Düsseldorf court handed victory to the company over rival Wilkinson Sword, a subsidiary of Edgewell Personal Care.
The Higher Regional Court of Düsseldorf ordered Wilkinson Sword to stop distributing razor blades that fit on Gillette’s Mach 3 razor.
In an announcement released yesterday, January 11, the court said that the interchangeable blades infringe Gillette’s patent rights, and issued a preliminary injunction against Wilkinson Sword. The court added that the judgment is not final.
The ruling affirms a decision made by the District Court of Düsseldorf in July this year, a ruling which both parties lodged an appeal against.
Germany is not the only country that the two companies are sparring in.
In September 2017, WIPR reported that Gillette, a subsidiary of consumer goods company Procter & Gamble, had sued Edgewell in the US for the second time in just over one year.
Gillette claimed, in a filing at the US District Court for the District of Connecticut, that Edgewell’s Hydro Connect 5 razor cartridges are positioned as compatible with Gillette Fusion handles.
Edgewell was accused of infringing a patent which relates to how the razor cartridge and handle connect.
A month later, in October, the US International Trade Commission announced it would investigate Edgewell based on a patent complaint filed by Gillette.
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