An International Guide to
Patent Case Management for Judges

2.7.1 Injunctive relief

In addition to pecuniary remedies (outlined in the next section), permanent injunctive relief is also available.¹¹⁰ In the ordinary course, a successful patentee will be granted a permanent injunction for the life of a patent.

However, injunctive relief is subject to equitable and discretionary considerations and, therefore, may not be an appropriate remedy in all cases. For example, the appropriateness of a permanent injunction has been queried by the Federal Court of Australia in respect of infringement of a patent claiming a new method of a medical treatment using a therapeutic agent that is also widely used for other non-infringing medical treatments.¹¹¹

Further, the form of the injunctive relief will depend on the specific circumstances of each case. A court can grant a permanent injunction prohibiting infringement in “general form” (i.e., restraining the infringer from infringing a particular patent or patents) or an injunction in terms limited to the specific infringements established at trial, known as a “conduct-based injunction” (where an infringer is restrained from doing those certain acts).¹¹²