Thursday, December 21, 2006

Ranbaxy beats Pfizer over Lipitor in Australia

According to an official release issued by the company to the BSE [Business Standard] on Dec. 21, 2006, Justice Neil Young ruled that Pfizer's Australian patent 628198 is invalid for false suggestion and misrepresentation in obtaining the grant, however, it said Ranbaxy's atorvastatin product infringes another Pfizer patent.

The invalidity of Pfizer’s Australian patent 628198 was principally based on Pfizer’s representation to the Australian Patent Office that the potency of R-enantiomer (atorvastatin) in relation to its ability to inhibit production of cholesterol was unexpectedly 10-fold more than that of the corresponding racemic material. This representation was held to be "false and misleading", the release said.

Jay Deshmukh, senior VP (global intellectual property) of Ranbaxy, said: "We are pleased with this decision as it stands, as it advances the entry of Ranbaxy’s generic atorvastatin in Australia to May 18, 2012."

[from the Business Standard]

IPBiz notes this as another downside in the chiral switch.

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