Bayer, J&J Sue Shanghai Pharma Unit to Block Xarelto Copies

Bayer AG and Johnson & Johnson filed a lawsuit alleging that generic versions of Xarelto proposed by a Shanghai Pharmaceuticals Holding Co. unit infringe a patent related to a method for using the blockbuster blood-thinner to treat clots that break free and block another blood vessel.

Bayer licenses the patent from J&J’s Janssen Pharmaceuticals Inc., according to a complaint filed Monday in the U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey. They seek a court order blocking Shanghai’s Changzhou Pharmaceutical Factory Co. from selling copies of Xarelto’s 10-, 15-, and 20-milligram tablets until the patent has expired.

The ...