By James DeGiulio --
Sandoz, Momenta Fail to Invalidate Teva Patents in Copaxone Suit
Teva Pharmaceutical Industries received a favorable ruling in its Copaxone patent infringement suit against Sandoz and Momenta Pharmaceuticals after their motion for summary judgment seeking to invalidate Teva's patents over the drug was denied.
In September 2008, Teva brought suit in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York following the ANDA submission by Sandoz, Novartis, and Momenta, alleging infringement of U.S. Patent Nos. 7,199,098, 6,939,539, 6,054,430, and 6,620,847 (see "Court Report," September 7, 2008). Foreign defendants Sandoz International GmbH and Novartis were dropped from the suit on August 26, when Teva filed a stipulation voluntarily dismissing the companies. The defendants filed a motion for summary judgment on December 23, 2009, arguing that Teva's patents were indefinite because Teva had not defined certain molecular weight terms and standards.
On September 7, Judge Barbara S. Jones denied the defendants' motion for summary judgment, ruling that Sandoz and Momenta had failed to prove that the asserted patents were invalid due to indefiniteness. Judge Jones found that Teva provided ample evidence to demonstrate that there is a genuine issue of material fact regarding the molecular weight terms. The judge also denied the defendants' attempt to exclude expert testimony from two witnesses that Teva presented in its opposition to the summary judgment motion. Judge Jones' order can be found here.
Precision Biosciences Granted Stay Pending Reexam of Cellectis' Patents
In its patent infringement case with Cellectis over materials used for genome modification, Precision Biosciences was granted a request to suspend proceedings pending final resolution and appeal of the USPTO reexamination of Cellectis' patents.
In March 2008, Cellectis brought an infringement suit against Precision in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of North Carolina, alleging that Precision had infringed U.S. Patent Nos. 6,610,545 and 7,309,605. The suit brought two counts of willful infringement and demanded declaratory judgments, injunctive relief, treble damages, and attorneys' fees and costs. Precision filed inter partes reexamination requests for both patents with the USPTO. In February and June 2010, the USPTO issued non-final actions, closed prosecution, and rejected all claims in the reexamination proceedings for both patents. Also in February 2010, Precision filed a motion to stay proceedings pending the resolution of the reexamination.
On August 31, Magistrate Judge David W. Daniel granted Precision's request to stay the proceedings pending the reexamination. Judge Daniel noted that it was highly unlikely that any appeal of the USPTO's decision will be resolved prior to the expiration of the patents. Further, Judge Daniel noted that nearly every claim asserted against Precision has been amended by Cellectis during the reexamination proceedings. Both parties were charged with filing status reports starting in November. Judge Daniel's order can be found here.
Celsis Granted Preliminary Injunction Against CellzDirect in LiverPool Infringement Suit
On September 10, Celsis announced that it had been granted a preliminary injunction against CellzDirect in its patent dispute over hepatocyte treatment LiverPool.
On June 29, Celsis brought suit against CellzDirect and Invitrogen in the Northern District of Illinois for infringement of U.S. Patent No. 7,604,929 covering the hepatocyte treatment (see "Court Report," July 5, 2010). Celsis alleged that CellzDirect willfully infringed and induced infringement of the '929 patent. In the complaint, Celsis sought a preliminary and permanent injunction against CellzDirect, in addition to monetary damages.
On September 8, Judge Milton Shadur granted Celsis' preliminary injunction request and enjoined CellzDirect from using the claimed methods in the '929 patent that relate to producing multi-cryopreserved hepatocytes. CellzDirect is further barred from selling or offering to sell the hepatocyte products, including those presently held in inventory. Judge Shadur's order granting the preliminary injunction can be found here.
James DeGiulio has a doctorate in molecular biology and genetics from Northwestern University and is a graduate of Northwestern University School of Law. Dr. DeGiulio is a member of MBHB's 2010 associate class and he can be contacted at [email protected].
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