VIVUS, Inc. announced that the United States District Court for the District of New Jersey has issued a claim construction (Markman) ruling governing patent litigation brought by VIVUS against Actavis Laboratories FL, Inc., Actavis Pharma, Inc., and Actavis Inc., collectively referred to as Actavis, and Teva Pharmaceuticals USA, Inc. and Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd., collectively referred to as Teva. The lawsuits were filed in response to Abbreviated New Drug Applications, or ANDAs, filed by Actavis and Teva. In these applications, Actavis and Teva seek to market and sell a generic version of the currently approved doses of Qsymia® (phentermine and topiramate extended-release) capsules CIV prior to the expiration of U.S. Patents listed in the FDA’s Approved Drug Products with Therapeutic Equivalence Evaluations, or the Orange Book. There are ten (10) VIVUS patents asserted in the litigation, the last of which expires in 2029.
VIVUS filed the lawsuits on the basis that Actavis’ and Teva’s proposed generic products infringe the VIVUS patents. In a Markman ruling, also known as a claim construction ruling, the Court determines the meaning of disputed patent claim terms at issue in patent litigation. In a July 20, 2016 Markman ruling, Judge Stanley R. Chesler adopted VIVUS’ proposed constructions for all but one of the disputed claim terms and adopted a compromise construction that was acceptable to VIVUS for the final claim term. The next phase of the ongoing litigation with Actavis will be expert discovery. The Teva case remains in fact discovery. No trial date has been scheduled in either case.
“We are extremely pleased with the Court’s claim construction ruling, which we believe benefits our case significantly,” said Seth Fischer, VIVUS’ CEO. “We remain confident in the strength of our intellectual property for Qsymia and plan to defend the patents vigorously.”
About Qsymia
Qsymia is approved in the U.S. and is indicated as an adjunct to a reduced-calorie diet and increased physical activity for chronic weight management in adults with an initial body mass index (BMI) of 30 kg/m2 or greater (obese) or 27 kg/m2 or greater (overweight) in the presence of at least one weight-related medical condition such as high blood pressure, type 2 diabetes, or high cholesterol.
The effect of Qsymia on cardiovascular morbidity and mortality has not been established. The safety and effectiveness of Qsymia in combination with other products intended for weight loss, including prescription and over-the-counter drugs, and herbal preparations, have not been established.
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