Lilly: German Supreme Court Grants Appeal in Dispute With Actavis

   By Josh Beckerman 
 

Eli Lilly & Co. said the German Federal Supreme Court granted the company's appeal in a patent dispute with Actavis over its Alimta cancer drug, vacating a prior decision denying infringement by Actavis.

In 2015, Actavis PLC bought Allergan Inc. for about $70.5 billion and changed its name to Allergan PLC.

Alimta treats mesothelioma, a rare cancer linked to asbestos exposure. It consists of two patents: The compound patent, which covers the basic chemical composition, and a second patent, which covers the method of administering Alimta with vitamins designed to mitigate side effects.

In the German case, which involves the vitamin regimen patent, the Supreme Court returned the case to the Court of Appeal for further proceedings, Lilly said.

An Allergan spokesman wasn't immediately available for comment late Tuesday.

Lilly lost a similar case to Actavis in February in the U.K., saying it planned to appeal the ruling, which affects sales in the U.K., France, Italy and Spain.

In August, a U.S. federal court ruled that generic products proposed by a Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd. unit would infringe a U.S. patent for Alimta.

Last year, Teva agreed to buy Allergan's generic-drug business for about $40.5 billion in cash and stock.

Write to Josh Beckerman at [e-mail]

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

June 14, 2016 19:56 ET (23:56 GMT)

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