The court has also announced that a trial date will be scheduled and is likely to be in January 2009. AstraZeneca remains focused on preparing for this trial and is confident in the strength of the intellectual property protecting Pulmicort Respules.
AstraZeneca has previously announced that it had filed a lawsuit in the US District Court of New Jersey against Ivax Pharmaceuticals, (now known as Teva Pharmaceutical Industries) for patent infringement.
The lawsuit is the result of an abbreviated new drug application filed by Teva with the FDA concerning its intent to market a generic version of AstraZeneca’s Pulmicort Respules in the US prior to the expiration of AstraZeneca’s patents in 2018, with pediatric exclusivity extending to 2019.