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news.Pfizer said that a court in the Netherlands has ruled that the basic patent covering atorvastatin - the active ingredient in cholesterol Lipitor - would be infringed by a competitor product from generics manufacturer Ranbaxy.
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The decision, which is subject to appeal, prevents Indian generics business Ranbaxy from launching its drug before Lipitor’s basic patent expires in November 2011.
“Today’s decision is another affirmation of the strength of the intellectual property behind Lipitor, one of the most important medical breakthroughs of our era,” said Pfizer general counsel Allen Waxman. “The court’s ruling reinforces the fundamental principle that patent laws exist to support and encourage medical innovators, not undermine them.”
The court also ruled that a second patent covering the calcium salt of atorvastati is invalid. Pfizer said that it will have no practical effect on the patent life of Lipitor in the Netherlands because the basic patent will remain in effect beyond the expiration of the calcium salt patent.
The decisions by the Dutch court do not affect challenges to Lipitor patents pending in other countries, including the US. Pfizer said it will continue to aggressively defend its patents against infringement.