Lilly wins patent case over Alimta

Ruling prevents Dr Reddy's Laboratories will from launching their alternative salt forms of pemetrexed until the patent expires.

The ruling came in the case of Eli Lilly and Company v. Dr Reddy's Laboratories.

"We are pleased with today's District Court ruling finding the Alimta vitamin regimen patent would be infringed by the competitor's proposed products," said Michael J. Harrington, Lilly's senior vice president and general counsel. "Lilly's extensive research to discover the Alimta vitamin regimen patent deserves intellectual property protection. We depend on strong and effective intellectual property protection to support our investment in the next generation of breakthrough medicines."

In a separate decision on 15 June, the District Court also ruled in favor of Lilly in the case of Eli Lilly and Company v. Hospira, Inc., denying Hospira's motion for summary judgement and granting Lilly's cross-motion for summary judgement.

These rulings mean Dr Reddy's Laboratories and Hospira will be prevented from launching their alternative salt forms of pemetrexed until the patent expires. Lilly expects both Dr Reddy's Laboratories and Hospira to appeal.

In October 2017, the Patent Trial and Appeal Board of the US Patent and Trademark Office ruled in the company's favor regarding patentability of the vitamin regimen for Alimta.

In March 2014, the US Court for the Southern District of Indiana upheld the validity of the vitamin regimen patent. In August 2015, the same court ruled in Lilly's favor regarding infringement of the vitamin regimen patent. The US Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit confirmed these rulings in a unanimous decision in January 2017, finding the patent is valid and would be infringed by the generic challengers' proposed products.