Seattle Genetics requests arbitration to resolve Daiichi Sankyo dispute
Seattle Genetics has asked the American Arbitration Association (AAA) to help resolve a dispute with Daiichi Sankyo, alleging that the Japanese pharma company used its technology to create a number of drugs.
In an announcement on Tuesday, November 12, Seattle Genetics said it had submitted the arbitration demand over Daiichi Sankyo’s metastatic breast cancer drug candidate, trastuzumab deruxtecan.
According to Seattle Genetics, technology used in this drug candidate are improvements to its own “pioneering” antibody-drug conjugate (ADC) technology.
ADC technology harnesses the targeting ability of antibodies to deliver cell-killing agents directly to cancer cells.
Seattle Genetics said it has owned the technology since 2008, under the terms of a collaboration agreement between the two companies.
In 2008, Seattle Genetics entered into a licencing agreement with Daiichi Sankyo, granting the Japanese company rights to use the ADC technology. The agreement ended in 2015.
In its claim for declaratory judgment, Daiichi Sankyo said that the technology in its drug candidate is distinct and recognisably different than the ADC technology.
Additionally, Seattle Genetics said Daiichi Sankyo has attempted to circumvent the dispute resolution process by filing a declaratory judgment action in the US District Court for the District of Delaware.
Daiichi Sankyo asked the court to rule that it was not infringing on the ADC technology. But, Seattle Genetics said its AAA demand is intended place the dispute in arbitration in Seattle, Washington, “where it belongs under the agreement”.
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