On March 8, 2022, Alvotech announced that it has executed a U.S. settlement agreement with Abbvie that grants Alvotech non-exclusive rights to market AVT02 (adalimumab) in the U.S starting July 1, 2023. AbbVie confirmed the resolution of disputes and stated that Alvotech will take a non-exclusive license to the patents, and in return, pay royalties
Is Silence Disclosure?
On January 3, 2021, The Federal Circuit held in a 2-1 decision in Novartis Pharmaceuticals Corp. v. Accord Healthcare, Inc. (Fed. Cir. 2022) that the claims of Novartis’ U.S. Pat. No. 9,187,405 (“the ’405 patent”) met the written description requirement under 35 U.S.C. § 112(a). Defendant HEC Pharm Co. Ltd. was the only remaining defendant…
Enablement Ruling Extinguishes Broad Antibody Claims, What Comes Next?
Last week, a federal court in Delaware unsealed an opinion supporting its grant of summary judgment that U.S. Patent No. 7,033,590 (“the ’590 Patent”) is invalid for lack of enablement.[1] The ’590 Patent is owned by Baxalta Inc. (“Baxalta”), a subsidiary of Takeda Pharmaceutical Co. Ltd (“Takeda”).
As we previously discussed,…
Just Skinny Enough: District Court Dismisses Inducement Claims Against Generic “Skinny Label”
On January 4, 2022, the District Court for the District of Delaware granted Hikma Pharmaceuticals USA Inc.’s (“Hikma”) motion to dismiss Amarin Pharma Inc.’s (“Amarin”) infringement claims, finding that Hikma’s “skinny label” for its generic heart drug, icosapent ethyl, did not induce infringement of Amarin’s three patents. This decision comes on the heels of the…
Not Backing Down Now – Multiple Amicus Curiae Briefs Filed for Amgen v. Sanofi
At the end of last month, three amicus curiae briefs were filed following the petition for a writ of certiorari in the Amgen, Inc. v. Sanofi, Inc. case. We previously discussed the petition for a writ of certiorari in detail here.
The first amicus brief was submitted by the Association of University of Technology…
A Potential Pivot in Patent Procedure – Will the Supreme Court Hear Amgen’s Challenge to the Standard of Review for Enablement?
As we have previously discussed, on February 11, 2021, the Federal Circuit decided Amgen Inc. et al. v. Sanofi, Aventisub LLC, et al. The Federal Circuit affirmed the district court’s grant of JMOL that Amgen’s Repatha® patents (U.S. Patent Nos. 8,829,165 and 8,859,741) were invalid for lack of enablement. The claims at issue…
PTAB to Review Two Eylea® (aflibercept) Patents After Granting Mylan’s Challenges
The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) recently instituted two of Mylan’s petitions seeking Inter Partes Review of Regeneron’s U.S. Patent No. 9,669,069 B2 (the “’069 Patent,” subject of IPR2021-00880) and U.S. 9,254,338 B2 (the “’338 Patent,” subject of IPR2021-00881), finding that Mylan (now part of Viatris) established a reasonable likelihood in prevailing in showing…
Key Members of Congress Urge USPTO to Curtail Discretionary Denials of IPR Petitions to Help Lower Drug Costs by Breaking Patent Thickets
On September 16, 2021, eleven congressional leaders (“the Signors”) sent a letter to Andrew Hirshfeld, the acting director of the United States Patent and Trademark Office (“USPTO”), requesting the USPTO to reevaluate the Patent Trial and Appeal Board’s (“PTAB”) view on discretionary denials of petitions for inter partes review (“IPR”). The Office uses discretionary denials…
Chinese Patent Linkage, Patent Term Adjustment, and Patent Term Extension Guidelines Unveiled For Comments
On August 3, 2021, the China National Intellectual Property Administration (CNIPA) released the Draft Revised Patent Examination Guidelines (“Draft Guidelines”) for comments. The revisions in the Draft Guidelines reflect the recently amended Chinese Patent Law that came into effect on June 1, 2021, and the Draft Revised Implementing Regulations (“Draft Regulations”) of the Chinese Patent…
Getting Lost in the Thicket: AbbVie Wields Its Expansive Humira® Patent Portfolio Against Alvotech’s Adalimumab Biosimilar
In the most recent of a series of litigations by AbbVie against manufacturers seeking to market biosimilar versions of Humira®, the world’s most profitable drug, AbbVie initiated an action against Alvotech in the district court for the Northern District of Illinois on April 27, 2021, after Alvotech requested approval of its biosimilar, AVT02, a biosimilar…