Lilly Testosterone Treatment Patent Invalid, Appeals Court Agrees

A federal appeals court upheld a decision finding a patent on Eli Lilly & Co.'s Axiron testosterone treatment is invalid, securing a win for drugmakers introducing generic competition.

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit said it found no reason to overturn a federal district court judge’s 200-page “thorough, well-considered opinion” concluding a claim of Lilly’s U.S. Patent No. 8,435,944 is invalid for obviousness (Eli Lilly & Co. v. Perrigo Co., 2017 BL 419341, Fed. Cir., No. 2016-2614, 11/22/17). The lower court also had ruled generic versions of Axiron made by Perrigo Co., Actavis Laboratories UT ...