Pharmaceuticals, Fig Leaves and Accidental Overspill: the Merck-y World of Co-existence Agreements

The AmeriKat passed out on all of herco-existence agreements...A mammoth decision from Mr Justice Norris plopped on the AmeriKat's desk last week in the long-running awaited trade mark co-existence saga of Merck KGaA v Merck Sharp & Dohme [2016] EWHC 49 (Pat).  With limited time to digest the decision herself, she had to rely on a helping paw in the form of Kat friend Nick Buckland (Irwin Mitchell) who has helpfully summarized the judgment for readers:"In the realm of trade mark (alas, as in life) even with the best intentions (and the assistance of binding legal agreements) we can't always get along.  And so it was that the case of Merck KGaA v Merck Sharp & Dohme Corp and others found itself in the Chancery Division of the High Court, following earlier preliminary skirmishes as reported here and here.In short, the lengthy historical background to this dispute is as follows: Merck started life as a pharmaceutical business in Germany in 1668.…