Merck Loses Bid for Supreme Court to Revive $2.5 Billion Verdict

The Supreme Court rebuffed a bid by Merck & Co.’s Idenix to revive a record verdict against Gilead Sciences Inc. in a dispute over a patent for a hepatitis C treatment.

The justices declined to hear arguments by Merck and its Italian partner, Universita Degli Studi di Cagliari, that an appeals court improperly invalidated its patent for a group of compounds that Merck’s Idenix unit contends is the basis for all major treatments for hepatitis C, including ones made by Gilead.

Gilead jumped 6.5% to $67.45 at 10:18 in New York trading. Merck was down less than 1% to ...