3rd Aug 2006 07:00
U.S. Appeals Court Upholds Lipitor's Basic Patent With Exclusivity Maintained in U.S. Until March, 2010 Appeals Court Also Invalidates Second Patent on Technical Defect Pfizer Pursuing Options For Further Review of Decision on Second Patent NEW YORK, Aug. 3 -- Pfizer Inc said today that a panel of the Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit has upheld the exclusivity of the main patent covering atorvastatin, the active ingredient in Lipitor, maintaining patent protection for Lipitor in the U.S. until March 2010. The Appeals Court also ruled that a second patent (U.S. 5,273,995) at issue inthe lawsuit covering the calcium salt of atorvastatin is invalid on technicalgrounds. That patent would have expired in June 2011. The Appeals Court ruled in a lawsuit brought by Pfizer against the genericmanufacturer Ranbaxy Ltd. The court held that Ranbaxy's generic atorvastatinproduct would infringe the company's basic patent (U.S. 4,681,893) broadlycovering atorvastatin. "While we are pleased that the court has affirmed that our basic patent isvalid and infringed, we are disappointed in the decision on the '995 patent,"said Peter Richardson, Pfizer's senior vice president, associate generalcounsel and chief of intellectual property. "The decision turned on a technicaldefect in the patent. There is a process for correcting such defects in theU.S. Patent and Trademark Office, and Pfizer plans to pursue that option." In addition, either party may seek review of the decision by the full U.S.Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit.SOURCE Pfizer Inc 08/03/2006 /CONTACT: Bryant Haskins, +1-212-733-8719, or Paul Fitzhenry,+1-212-733-4637, both of Pfizer Inc/ /Company News On-Call: Pfizer's press releases are available through PRNewswire's Company News On-Call service on PRN's Web Site. Visit http://www.prnewswire.com/comp/688250.html / /Photo: A free corporate logo to accompany this story is available immediatelyvia Wieck Photo Database to any media with telephoto receiveror electronic darkroom, PC or Macintosh, that can accept overheadtransmissions. To retrieve a logo, please call 972-392-0888./ /Company News On-Call: http://www.prnewswire.com/comp/688250.html / /Web site: http://www.pfizer.com / (PFE) ENDPFIZER INCRelated Shares:
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