Supreme Court Asked to Step in Amid Patent Claims Losing Streak

The Supreme Court could decide as soon as Friday whether to jump into a dispute over how broad a swath of chemicals a patent can claim, an issue some drug companies say could influence investments in the search for groundbreaking cures.

Just over four years ago, Merck & Co.’s Idenix won a record-setting $2.5 billion jury verdict over its patent on a hepatitis C treatment. The win was short lived: Gilead Sciences Inc. convinced a district court and the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit the patent was invalid.

The appeals court ruling highlighted a trend of ...