The court ruled in CAT’s favor on all counts, denying Abbott’s request for permission to appeal its judgment of 20 December 2004, although Abbott can now apply to the Court of Appeal directly for permission to appeal.
Abbott has been ordered to pay CAT’s costs of the case once assessed and has agreed to pay to CAT GBP2.85 million as an interim payment of costs due.
Abbott has paid CAT $23.7 million in royalty arrears and has agreed to pay an additional sum of $1.29 million, representing interest and compensation for currency loss on this amount.
Humira, the leading CAT-derived antibody, isolated and optimized in collaboration with Abbott, has been approved for marketing as a treatment for rheumatoid arthritis in 51 countries.
Following unsuccessful efforts to resolve a dispute on the matter of royalty offset provisions for Humira, CAT commenced legal proceedings against Abbott Biotechnology Limited and Abbott GmbH.
On 20 December 2004, the judge ruled in CAT’s favor stating that, “Abbott was in error when it made its first royalty payment to CAT calculated on the basis that only 2% of the net sales was due. It should have calculated on the basis of the full royalty of just over 5% and should have paid and continued to pay CAT accordingly.”