Saul Ewing Arnstein & Lehr issued the following announcement on June 28.
Saul Ewing Arnstein & Lehr Partner Charles M. Lizza, Chair of the Firm’s Intellectual Property Litigation practice, is a member of the legal team that just secured a grant of certiorari by the U.S. Supreme Court in the case of Helsinn Healthcare S.A., v. Teva Pharmaceuticals USA, Inc., et al.
The Court agreed to review a Federal Circuit decision in a case of first impression that interpreted the on-sale bar provision in the America Invents Act to invalidate a Helsinn patent.
Helsinn’s patent covers its Aloxi® brand drug product which treats chemotherapy-induced nausea and vomiting and has annual sales that exceeded a half billion dollars. In its petition for certiorari, Helsinn argued the ruling is "indefensible" and the result of a "profoundly flawed analysis." Legal experts have said the lower court’s ruling could put many patents at risk; therefore, the case will be closely watched by the pharmaceutical industry and the intellectual property bar.
Original source can be found here.