Shire acquires ViroPharma in $4.2 billion orphan drug deal
UK-based drugmaker Shire plc announced on November 11 that it had acquired rare disease biopharmaceutical company ViroPharma in an agreement worth approximately $4.2 billion.
Supreme Court hears Medtronic case
On November 5, the US Supreme Court heard oral arguments in the Medtronic Inc v Boston Scientific Corporation case to determine whether the patent holder or licensee bears the burden of proof in matters where declaratory judgment of non-infringement has been sought.
Syntrix celebrates US damages ruling
A federal court has upheld a ruling that biotech company Illumina should pay rival Syntrix $115 million and an 8 percent running royalty rate for patent infringement.
Forest and Actavis settle over blood pressure drug
US pharmaceutical company Forest Laboratories and drug company Actavis have settled a legal dispute over a patent protecting blood pressure drug Bystoli (nebivolol).
SPC questions referred to CJEU in Actavis v Boehringer
The UK Patents Court has referred four questions to the CJEU seeking clarification on how the SPC Regulation should be interpreted in relation to drug products made of a combination of active ingredients.
Myriad decision applied in diagnostic claims case
The US District Court for the Northern District of California has found that diagnostic claims covering conventional detection methods do not make the use of a natural phenomenon patent eligible.
Botox prevails with Botulex challenge
A US trademark for Botulex would be too confusingly similar to Botox if granted, the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board has ruled.
Pfizer wins IL-13 priority over Sanofi
The US Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit affirmed on Tuesday that pharmaceutical company Pfizer can patent a DNA polynucleotide ahead of rival Sanofi-Aventis.
Novartis petitions FDA on biosimilar naming convention
Novartis has urged the FDA to allow biosimilars to bear the same international nonproprietary names as their reference products.
Indian Patent Office rejects bid for cancer drug compulsory licence
The Indian Patent Office has rejected an application for a compulsory licence that was filed by domestic drug maker BDR Pharmaceuticals.
