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  • Orange Book Blog is published for informational purposes only; it contains no legal advice whatsoever. Publication of Orange Book Blog does not create an attorney-client relationship. Orange Book Blog is Aaron Barkoff's personal website and it is intended primarily for other attorneys. Orange Book Blog is not edited by McDonnell Boehnen Hulbert & Berghoff LLP ("MBHB") or its clients. Therefore, no part of Orange Book Blog--whether information, commentary, or other--may be attributed to MBHB or its clients. Readers should be aware that MBHB represents many companies in the pharmaceutical and biotechnology industries, and therefore Orange Book Blog may occasionally report on news that relates to MBHB clients. Orange Book Blog will always strive to be unbiased in its reporting. All information on Orange Book Blog should be double-checked for its accuracy and current applicability. -- © Aaron F. Barkoff 2006-08

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October 23, 2006

Federal Circuit Denies Ranbaxy's Request for Rehearing in Lipitor Case

Pfizer announced in a press release today that the Federal Circuit has denied Ranbaxy's request for rehearing in the Lipitor patent case between the two companies.  On August 2nd of this year, a panel of the Federal Circuit invalidated one of two Pfizer patents on atorvastatin, the active ingredient in Lipitor, but upheld the other (click here for Aug. 2 opinion).  Ranbaxy had appealed that decision.

The Pfizer patent that was previously declared valid and infringed is set to expire in March, 2010.  The patent declared invalid will expire in June, 2011, but Pfizer has indicated that it will seek to correct the defect in that patent through a reissue patent application.

Ranbaxy was the first generic drug company to file an ANDA challenging Pfizer's patents on atorvastatin, and was considered especially agressive for doing so.  Lipitor is the world's best-selling pharmaceutical, with sales last year of $12 billion.

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Posted by Aaron Barkoff in Paragraph IV Litigation |

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