Pfizer announced Thursday that a U.S. district court ruled in its favor in a lawsuit against Teva, upholding the validity of the composition of matter patent, as well as the pain and seizure use patents, for Lyrica (pregabalin). The drugmaker said the decision preserves its U.S. marketing exclusivity for the product through December 30, 2018.
Pfizer filed infringement lawsuits in federal court beginning in 2009 against generic drugmakers, including Teva and Mylan, which sought FDA approval to market generic versions of the product before it lost patent protection. The company noted that “litigation on the same patents remains pending against other generic companies, but no trials have been scheduled in these later cases.”
Lyrica generated $3.7 billion in sales for 2011. ISI Group analyst Mark Schoenebaum said a generic challenge to Lyrica could have cut Pfizer’s earnings per share by as much as 17 cents in the next five years.
