Hopewell Urges Court to Pause Merck MS Suit After Patents Voided

Hopewell Pharma Ventures Inc. filed an emergency motion to stay Merck Serono SA’s federal lawsuit alleging infringement related to its Mavenclad multiple sclerosis treatment after an administrative tribunal invalidated two of the the patents.

The case should be paused while Merck appeals the Patent Trial and Appeal Board decisions to the Federal Circuit because no issues of fact remain in the case and no trial is necessary, Hopewell said Nov. 27 in a letter supporting its motion. Merck will agree to a stay only if Hopewell refrains from launching its generic version of Mavenclad during the pendency of the ...