SNY Sanofi

   By Stephen Nakrosis 
 

A Delaware jury delivered a verdict upholding two of Amgen Inc.'s (AMGN) patents related to PCSK9 antibodies, the company said Monday.

Regeneron Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (REGN) and Sanofi (SNY) had contended that Amgen's patent claims to the antibodies was overly broad, and the companies said they will file post-motion decisions and, if necessary, appeal the decision.

"Today's decision protects intellectual property which is essential to innovators who are bringing forward new medicines for patients with serious diseases," said Robert A. Bradway, chairman and chief executive officer at Amgen. "We are thankful that the jury weighed the evidence carefully and recognized the validity of Amgen's patents."

Amgen also said the European Patent Office and the Japanese Patent Office rejected challenges to the validity of Amgen's patents brought by the two companies.

"We are disappointed in today's verdict," said Karen Linehan, executive vice president and general counsel, Sanofi. "It is our longstanding belief that all of Amgen's asserted U.S. patent claims are invalid and we believe the law and the facts support our positions."

Regeneron and Sanofi said they plan to file post-trial motions over the next few months, in an effort to overturn the verdict and request a new trial. The two companies also said if necessary they will file an appeal with the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit.

--Write to Stephen Nakrosis at stephen.nakrosis@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

February 25, 2019 18:07 ET (23:07 GMT)

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