Patents

Just days after a court in Canada barred Amgen’s Soliris biosimilar until patent expiry in 2027, a UK High Court has handed a favorable ruling to the California-based firm and Samsung Bioepis, ruling that their products do not infringe a patent shielding the branded treatment for paroxysmal nocturnal hemoglobinuria.

A Q&A with DeAnn Smith, partner and co-chair of the Patent Trial and Appeal Board Proceedings Practice Group at law firm Foley Hoag.

Eight more ANDA filers remain in play challenging patents shielding Esperion’s Nexletol (bempedoic acid) after Micro Labs deal out litigation via a settlement agreement.

Hikma said it would admit no wrongdoing or liability after reaching a preliminary settlement agreement over illicit ‘pay-for-delay’ claims involving its US version of Xyrem “that protects the company’s interests and provides clarity to our stakeholders.”

Viatris will look to introduce generic versions of Heron Therapeutics’ aprepitant brands, Cinvanti and Aponvie, around three years before patent expiry after settling litigation with the originator. Other court cases remain ongoing.

Anil Matai, director general, Organization of Pharmaceutical Producers of India, talks in this audio interview about the evolving intellectual property landscape in India post the 2024 amendments, including long-standing sticking points such as Section 3(d) of India’s patent regulations and innovator firms' experience of the Bolar provision. There’s also a "compelling reason" to consider regulatory data protection, he claims.

Generic competition to AstraZeneca’s blockbuster SGLT2 inhibitor Forxiga (dapagliflozin) treatment for diabetes may hit England and Wales earlier than 2028 after a pair of SPCs were invalidated following proceedings initiated by a trio of generics manufacturers.

Glenmark’s advantage for its UK generic version of AstraZeneca’s Forxiga (dapagliflozin) has quickly been snuffed out, after the originator won on appeal its request for injunctive relief.

Sandoz has reached an agreement with AbbVie to dismiss without prejudice patent-infringement litigation involving more than 20 patents shielding the originator’s blockbuster JAK inhibitor Rinvoq.

The US Senate Judiciary Committee’s Chairman Chuck Grassley criticized the Senate’s reduced working hours as six previously introduced bills once again land on their desk.

With sales of $550m last year and a high barrier to entry, Exparel marks an intriguing target for abbreviated new drug application sponsors. Having shot down a US patent last year and won US FDA approval for its ANDA, Jiangsu Hengrui’s US eVenus Pharmaceutical Laboratories subsidiary and partner Fresenius Kabi have just reached a settlement agreement.

A UK High Court justice came down on the side of Glenmark in AstraZeneca’s bid to enjoin the firm from launching a generic version of its Forxiga blockbuster before judgment is delivered in the firms’ patent-litigation clash.