Justices Reject Review of Novartis Multiple Sclerosis Drug Case

Novartis Pharmaceuticals Corp. failed to convince the US Supreme Court to consider reviving a dosage regimen patent on its blockbuster multiple sclerosis drug Gilenya.

The high court’s denial of Novartis’s petition for review dashes its hopes of reviving a Delaware federal court’s finding that HEC Pharm Co.'s generic drug infringed US Patent No. 9,187,405, which expires in 2027.

In addition, the justices passed on an opportunity to clarify when a patent must describe what isn’t a feature rather than what is, also known as “negative limitations.”

Initially, the US Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit sided with Novartis ...