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3 September 2015Americas

Bass suffers another IPR setback

Hedge fund manager Kyle Bass’s Coalition for Affordable Drugs has suffered another setback in its bid to knock out allegedly spurious patents after the US Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) declined to institute an inter partes review (IPR) of a patent owned by Biogen.

In a decision handed down yesterday, September 2, the Patent Trial and Appeal Board (PTAB) said it would not review the validity of Biogen’s patent covering its multiple sclerosis (MS) treatment drug Tecfidera (dimethyl fumarate).

The decision comes just over a week after the PTAB rejected another IPR petition filed by the coalition against two Acorda Therapeutics-owned patents covering its Ampyra (dalfampridine) drug, which is also used to treat MS.

The latest decision centres on Biogen’s US patent number 8,399,514. The patent was granted in 2013.

Bass had argued that claims 1-20 of the patent were obvious and should be cancelled.

But Administrative Patent Judge Fred McKelvey, who wrote the final opinion, disagreed.

He wrote: “We have considered all arguments presented by petitioner, but find that none justify instituting an IPR.”

George Scandos, chief executive of Biogen, said: “Tecfidera is a significant advance for the treatment of MS and this result speaks to the pioneering efforts by Biogen to bring therapy to patients.

“Patent protection is critical to enabling biopharmaceutical companies to develop new therapies and advance science and medicine,” he added.

In a statement to the House of Representatives Judiciary Committee earlier this year Bass said his petitions intend to “police the abusive patent tactics used by the worst-offending drug companies.”

Last month, Bass filed a counter motion after drug maker Celgene requested that sanctions be brought against Bass for his “ abusive” IPR petitions.

In his counter-motion Bass said that Celegene’s Revlimid (lenalidomide) and Thalomid (thalidomide) drugs are covered by “ poor quality patents” and that the prices are “artificially high”.


More on this story

Americas
1 September 2015   Hedge fund manager Kyle Bass’s group the Coalition for Affordable Drugs has targeted two patents owned by the University of Pennsylvania in the latest petition for an inter partes review.
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9 October 2015   Hedge fund manger Kyle Bass has secured his first inter partes review trial after the Patent Trial and Appeal Board instituted a challenge against a patent owned by biopharmaceutical company Shire.
Americas
21 October 2015   The Patent Trial and Appeal Board has rejected another inter partes review petition filed by hedge fund manager Kyle Bass’s organisation the Coalition for Affordable Drugs.

More on this story

Americas
1 September 2015   Hedge fund manager Kyle Bass’s group the Coalition for Affordable Drugs has targeted two patents owned by the University of Pennsylvania in the latest petition for an inter partes review.
Americas
9 October 2015   Hedge fund manger Kyle Bass has secured his first inter partes review trial after the Patent Trial and Appeal Board instituted a challenge against a patent owned by biopharmaceutical company Shire.
Americas
21 October 2015   The Patent Trial and Appeal Board has rejected another inter partes review petition filed by hedge fund manager Kyle Bass’s organisation the Coalition for Affordable Drugs.