Abbott Files Patent-Infringement Suit Vs. J&J Over Simponi
May 06 2009 - 12:22PM
Dow Jones News
Abbott Laboratories (ABT) has filed a lawsuit against Johnson
& Johnson (JNJ) alleging J&J's new Simponi arthritis drug
infringes a patent for a competing drug from Abbott.
Abbott's suit was filed Friday in U.S. District Court for the
District of Massachusetts, and J&J disclosed it in a regulatory
filing Tuesday.
Abbott, of Abbott Park, Ill., markets Humira, a treatment for
rheumatoid arthritis and other conditions, which competes with
J&J's Remicade. J&J's follow-up to Remicade, Simponi, was
approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration on April 24.
Schering-Plough Corp. (SGP) markets both Remicade and Simponi
outside the U.S. in a partnership with J&J, New Brunswick,
N.J.
Humira had $4.5 billion in sales last year and has been a big
reason for Abbott's solid financial performance in recent
years.
The drugs belong to a category known as anti-tumor necrosis
factor, or anti-TNFs, which are either injected or infused
intravenously. Simponi is a once-monthly injection, which J&J
hopes patients and doctors will view as more convenient than
Humira's regimen of injections every other week.
According to the lawsuit, a U.S. patent was issued to Abbott in
2007 covering certain methods for treating rheumatoid arthritis, by
using an antibody that neutralizes TNF together with a drug called
methotrexate, an immunosuppressant drug. Humira can be used with
methotrexate, and so can Simponi.
Abbott is seeking a court declaration that Simponi infringes
Abbott's patent, as well as damages.
"We are currently reviewing the complaint and will vigorously
contest it," said Brian Kenney, spokesman for J&J's Centocor
Ortho Biotech unit, which markets both Remicade and Simponi. "We
believe we have rights to all of the intellectual property we need
to market Simponi."
Abbott spokesman Scott Stoffel said: "Abbott believes that
Simponi, as prescribed and used for the treatment of RA in
combination with methotrexate, infringes its patent and will
vigorously defend its intellectual property."
Credit Suisse analyst Catherine Arnold noted that J&J and
Abbott and have been in patent disputes related to their respective
anti-TNF drugs for several years. "The latest patent challenge by
[Abbott] could be part of an overall competitive dispute between"
the two companies, she wrote in a note to clients.
J&J shares recently fell 66 cents to $53.70, while Abbott
was off 75 cents at $42.98. Shares of Schering-Plough, which has
agreed to be taken over by Merck & Co. (MRK), fell 15 cents to
$22.92.
-By Peter Loftus, Dow Jones Newswires; 215-656-8289;
peter.loftus@dowjones.com