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Pharmascience Win In Canada Clarifies Damages Rules

Court Rejects Pfizer’s Hypothetical Version Of Events

 
• By Dave Wallace

Canada’s Federal Court of Appeal has dismissed an attempt by Pfizer to limit damages owed to Pharmascience as part of litigation over pregabalin. The court rejected Pfizer’s argument that the generics firm was not entitled to certain damages for lost sales that Pfizer said could have been blocked by the originator hypothetically seeking to enforce a patent protecting the Lyrica brand.

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The ruling clarifies aspects of Canada’s section 8 damages rules • Source: Shutterstock

Canada’s Federal Court of Appeal has dismissed an attempt by Pfizer to limit damages owed to Pharmascience as part of long-running litigation over Lyrica (pregabalin). The court rejected Pfizer’s argument that the generics firm was not entitled to certain damages for lost sales that Pfizer said could have been blocked by the originator hypothetically seeking to enforce a Lyrica patent, in a ruling that helps to clarify the country’s section 8 damages rules.

Pharmascience had originally attempted to enter Canada’s pregabalin market in 2011, but was barred from doing so by Pfizer having...

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