Sun Pharma gets favourable US Supreme Court verdict in patent case

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Sun Pharmaceutical Industries on Wednesday said the US Supreme Court has given a favourable verdict in its patent case against Novo Nordisk over generic Prandin tablets used for treating diabetes.

US Supreme Court has ruled in favour of the company's subsidiary, Caraco Pharmaceutical Laboratories, in it's patent litigation against Novo Nordisk over Caraco's generic version of prandin, repaglinide tablets, Sun Pharma said in a statement.

"The Supreme Court, in a unanimous opinion, concluded that Caraco can seek correction of Novo Nordisk's inaccurate use code regarding the combination use of repaglinide and metformin for the treatment of type II diabetes," it added.

The judgement has said, "The text and context of the provision demonstrate that a generic company can employ the counterclaim to challenge a brand's overbroad use code. We accordingly hold that Caraco may bring a counterclaim seeking to 'correct' Novo's use code..."

Prandin is a registered trademark of Denmark-based drug firm Novo Nordisk.

The decision will help all generic companies prevent brand companies from misrepresenting their patents to the USFDA and improperly delaying or preventing generic companies from marketing their drugs, Sun Pharma said.

Caraco's abbreviated new drug application (ANDA) for generic Prandin is still awaiting approval by the United States Food and Drug Administration (USFDA), it added.

"Prandin has annual sales of approximately USD 230 million in the US," Sun Pharma said.

A separate appeal concerning the validity of patents for Prandin is pending before the Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit after a lower court ruled in favour of Caraco, it added.

Scrips of Sun Pharma were trading at Rs 596.50 apiece in the afternoon on the BSE, up 2.11 per cent from its previous close.