Patent Prosecution 7.1 UFRF shall diligently prosecute and maintain the Licensed Patents using counsel of its choice and reasonably acceptable to Licensee. UFRF shall promptly provide Licensee with a copy of all Licensed Patent: applications, amendments, filings, all office actions, invoices and other communications sent to, and received from, the Licensed Patent counsel, the United States Patent and Trademark Office, and foreign patent offices. Both parties agree to keep such information confidential.
Joint Patents (i) Intrexon shall be responsible for filing, prosecuting and maintaining any Joint Patents at its own cost and expense, except that ARES TRADING shall be responsible for maintaining at its own cost and expense any issued Joint Patents which are requested by ARES TRADING and directed exclusively to the composition, formulation, manufacture or use of one or more Products (“Product Specific Patents”). ARES TRADING and Intrexon shall cooperate, to the extent such is reasonable and can be done without substantially compromising the value and or protection of any Inventions, to develop a suitable portfolio of Product Specific Patents and shall coordinate on the territory (country list) where protection is intended. To this end, during the Term ARES TRADING may request, at its discretion, that Intrexon file one or more continuation or divisional applications (as appropriate) within an application for Joint Patent for the express purpose of creating Product Specific Patents, which request shall be honored to the extent reasonable, permitted by applicable laws, and otherwise consistent with this Agreement. Each Joint Owner shall fully cooperate with the other Joint Owner in connection with the filing, prosecution and maintenance of such Joint Patents. The responsible Joint Owner for a particular Joint Patent shall consult with the other Joint Owner, shall keep the other Joint Owner reasonably informed of the status of such Joint Patent, and shall promptly provide the other Joint Owner with drafts of all proposed material filings and correspondences with the patent authorities with respect to such Joint Patent for such other Joint Owner’s review and comment prior to the submission of such proposed filings and correspondences. The responsible Joint Owner shall confer with the other Joint Owner and take into consideration such other Joint Owner’s comments prior to submitting such filings and correspondences, provided that such other Joint Owner shall provide such comments within [*****] days of receiving the draft filings and correspondences from the responsible Joint Owner. If such other Joint Owner does not provide comments within such period of time, then such other Joint Owner shall be deemed to have no comment to such proposed filings or correspondences. In case of disagreement between the Joint Owners with respect to the filing, prosecution and maintenance of such Joint Patents, the final decision shall be made by the responsible Joint Owner.
Prosecution and Maintenance of Patent Rights (a) Ardelyx shall be responsible for the preparation, filing, prosecution (including without limitation conducting any interferences, oppositions, reissue proceedings and reexaminations) and maintenance of the Listed Patents, unless and until Sanofi has exercised the Option to Continue and Ardelyx has received the Continuation Milestone. Ardelyx agrees to prosecute and maintain the Listed Patents in those countries set forth on Exhibit C. A detail of Patent Costs incurred by Ardelyx in prosecuting and maintaining the Listed Patents prior to the Effective Date is set forth on Exhibit B; provided, however, that the costs and expenses set forth on Exhibit B do not include those costs and expenses incurred by Ardelyx in the drafting and filing of the Listed Patents. Ardelyx will bear the [***] of Patent Costs after the Effective Date and prior to Sanofi’s exercise of the Option to Continue. After Ardelyx has paid such amount, Sanofi shall reimburse Ardelyx for any additional Patent Costs incurred by Ardelyx after the Effective Date during the Term until such time as Sanofi exercises the Option to Continue and Ardelyx has received the Continuation Milestone. Ardelyx shall submit invoices to Sanofi at the beginning of each Calendar Quarter, which invoice shall detail the Patent Costs in the previous Calendar Quarter and, if applicable, include all copies of invoices from outside counsel. Sanofi shall pay each invoice within thirty (30) days of its receipt thereof. During the time that Ardelyx is responsible for the prosecution of the Listed Patents, Ardelyx shall provide Sanofi with advance copies of, and a reasonable opportunity to comment upon, proposed patent filings, related prosecution strategies and proposed correspondence with patent officials or other Third Parties relating to any Listed Patents. Ardelyx, in the course of such activities, will consider comments received from Sanofi with respect to such proposed filings, strategies and correspondence in good faith and will not unreasonably reject such comments to the extent such comments could reasonably be deemed to impact Ardelyx Compounds. In any event, Ardelyx will not finally abandon any claims and will not limit any claims that are specific to Ardelyx Compounds without Sanofi’s prior written consent. Ardelyx shall cooperate to assist Sanofi in assuming the prosecution and maintenance of the Listed Patents as provided by Section 8.4(i), including by transferring to Sanofi the patent files associated with such Licensed Products and providing any other information reasonably requested by Sanofi and access to the relevant inventors.
Joint Patent Committee (a) The Parties will establish a “
Patent Prosecution and Maintenance From and after the date of this Agreement, the provisions of this Section 8 shall control the prosecution of any patent application and maintenance of any patent included within Licensed Patent Rights. TSRI shall (a) direct and control the preparation, filing and prosecution of the United States and foreign patent applications within Licensed Patent Rights (including without limitation any reissues, reexaminations, appeals to appropriate patent offices and/or courts, interferences and foreign oppositions); and (b) maintain the patents issuing therefrom; in each case, using TSRI’s Office of Patent Counsel (“OPC”) or outside patent counsel selected by TSRI and approved by Company in writing, which approval shall not be unreasonably withheld, and consistent with the requirements of this Section 8.1. The parties shall mutually agree in advance, on a Licensed Patent Right-by-Licensed Patent Right basis, whether TSRI’s OPC or independent counsel will be principally responsible for filing, prosecution and maintenance of a Licensed Patent Right, it being understood that if the parties agree that external patent counsel will be principally responsible, TSRI shall have the right, at its sole discretion, to utilize TSRI’s OPC in addition to (i.e., in support of and to direct) such independent counsel’s patent filing, prosecution and maintenance activities. The reasonable and documented fees and expenses with regard to the preparation, filing and prosecution of patent applications and maintenance of patents (including without limitation inter partes proceedings) included within Licensed Patent Rights (“Patent Costs”) shall be paid as set forth below. Company shall have full rights of consultation with TSRI and such outside patent counsel on all matters relating to Licensed Patent Rights. TSRI shall consult, and shall instruct its counsel to consult, with Company as to the preparation, filing, prosecution and maintenance of the Licensed Patent Rights (including, without limitation, any reissues, reexaminations, appeals to appropriate patent offices and/or courts, interferences and foreign oppositions) reasonably prior to any deadline or action with the U.S. Patent & Trademark Office or any foreign patent office, and shall furnish to Company copies of all relevant documents reasonably in advance of such consultation, consider in good faith Company’s comments and suggestions with regard to such preparation, filing, prosecution and/or maintenance (including without limitation any inter partes proceedings) of the patent applications and/or patents within Licensed Patent Rights, and use its reasonable efforts to implement all reasonable and timely requests made by Company; provided, however, that in the event of a disagreement between TSRI and Company on any such patent prosecution or maintenance matters, TSRI shall have final decision-making authority over all such patent matters. Company shall have the right, but not the obligation, to be present at any court or patent office proceedings relating to Licensed Patent Rights. Provided that Company is not in material breach of its obligations under this Agreement, TSRI shall not abandon any patent or patent application within the Licensed Patent Rights without Company’s prior written consent.
Prosecution Hospital shall be responsible for the preparation, filing, prosecution and maintenance of all patent applications and patents included in Patent Rights. Company shall reimburse Hospital for Patent Costs incurred by Hospital relating thereto in accordance with Section 4.2.
