Amgen (NASDAQ: AMGN) announced today that the United States (U.S.) District Court in Pennsylvania has entered final judgment and a permanent injunction against Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd. and Teva Pharmaceuticals USA prohibiting them from infringing Amgen's patents relating to human G-CSF (granulocyte colony-stimulating factor) and methods for its use.
Today's judgment was accompanied by Teva's admission that its Neutroval™ product infringes the two Amgen patents at issue in the litigation and that those patents are valid and enforceable. The Court's injunction extends until Nov. 10, 2013, after which date Teva may sell Neutroval in the U.S.
Regarding Neugranin™, another Teva G-CSF product, Teva agrees not to sell Neugranin until Nov. 10, 2013 unless it first obtains a final court decision that Amgen's patents are not infringed by Neugranin. Pursuant to the parties' agreement, the launch date for either product could be sooner if certain unexpected events occur: a third party launches a similar G-CSF product and Amgen fails to sue that third party, or the patents are held invalid or unenforceable in a final court decision in an action brought by a third party.
The settlement terms do not include any financial payments between the parties. The two patents at issue in the litigation, U.S. Patent Nos. 5,580,755 and 5,582,823, expire in early December 2013.
"We are very pleased with this outcome, as it reaffirms the validity of these important patents," said David J. Scott, senior vice president, general counsel and secretary at Amgen. "This closes this matter and allows Amgen to continue to focus on bringing innovative therapies to patients with grievous illnesses."
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