KaVo and Mitscherlich prevail against MK-Dent in dental turbine dispute

On 17 July 2026, Munich Regional Court, presided over by judge Hubertus Schacht, handed down its judgment in the infringement proceedings brought by KaVo Dental against MK-Dent (case ID: 21 O 596/25). Also named as defendants were the online dental equipment retailer Global-Dent and the dental spare parts supplier Sparedent.

The court found that all three defendants had infringed KaVo’s EP 1 709 928 B1, which relates to high-speed dental turbines. This affects both numerous types of turbine impellers and entire turbines in which these impellers are fitted.

As EP 928 expired in March 2026, the proceedings no longer concerned an injunction but rather damages only. Accordingly, the court ordered MK-Dent and its co-defendants to provide information, render accounts, recall and destroy the products,  and reimburse the costs of the cease-and-desist notice.

In addition to Schacht, the panel of Civil Chamber 21 also comprises Sebastian Benz and Julia Obermeier.

Damages over eleven years

The ruling followed a decision by the German Federal Patent Court, which in June 2026 dismissed MK-Dent’s nullity action against EP 928.

KaVo has not yet enforced the judgment, but may now claim damages from MK-Dent and its co-defendants for the period from January 2015 to March 2026. The latter have not yet decided whether to appeal against the judgment.

Established players in a niche market

The dispute involves two established players in a technically demanding and commercially significant market segment. KaVo Dental is a long-established German manufacturer that has been a driving force in the international dental industry for decades. Since 1909, it has manufactured devices such as dental turbines and contra-angle handpieces. Today, KaVo is part of the Finnish Planmeca Group.

MK-Dent is likewise a well-known German supplier of dental instruments and dental technology products. The company is family-owned.

According to industry sources, KaVo is regarded as one of the drivers of innovation in the dental turbine segment. Many MK-Dent products are compatible with KaVo products. However, Japanese and US companies are also active in this segment.

Dental turbines are among the key instruments of modern dentistry. Technical innovations in this field have a direct impact on the performance, reliability and competitiveness of the products. However, patent disputes in this technical field are relatively rare.

Mitscherlich for KaVo

KaVo relied on a mixed team from the Munich-based IP firm Mitscherlich, with lawyer Markus Bölling and patent attorney Clemens Thun leading the case. In-house, the proceedings were coordinated by Dietrich Peterka, head of IP at KaVo.

Preu Bohlig partners Christian Donle and Martin Momtschilow represented MK-Dent, Global-Dent and Sparedent. They worked alongside patent attorneys Friedrich Emmerling and Stefan Demmel of Braun-Dullaeus Pannen Emmerling.

For many years, Emmerling and Donle have litigated together in a different technical sector, namely mobile communications on behalf of Huawei.