Legal

A lot can happen in 24 hours, as Novartis can attest. The Swiss originator has managed to win a court order temporarily putting the brakes on MSN’s Entresto ANDA product – just hours after a lower court refused a similar request.

Novartis has been spooked by the potential for MSN Laboratories to launch its generic version of the originator’s $3bn Entresto (sacubitril/valsartan) heart failure brand, filing an emergency motion in an appeals court in Washington DC just days ahead of the proposed expiry of one of Entresto’s US patents.

The new court ruling could enhance the appeal of the Unified Patent Court for enforcing European patents.

The exact causes leading to Chinese authorities’ investigation of the UK major remain unclear at this point, but its key oncology drugs are facing fierce local competition from homegrown rivals.