Ariad asks court to restore patent-suit win against Lilly
A federal appeals court will decide whether Eli Lilly and Co. must pay $65.2 million in damages, plus royalties, over a drug-patent claim from Ariad Pharmaceuticals, according to Bloomberg News.
In 2006, a Boston jury found that two Lilly drugs -- osteoporosis drug Evista and the sepsis medicine Xigris -- relied on a technique licensed to Ariad, a biotechnology company based in Cambridge, Mass. The jury awarded Ariad $65.2 million and said that Lilly should pay royalties of 2.3 percent of sales of the two drugs.
However, that decision was appealed and last April was nullified by a three-judge panel, which issued a ruling that invalidated parts of Ariad's patent. The panel said that Ariad failed to adequately describe the invention or explain how others could replicate its work.
"The de******ion is clear and concise," John Whelan, an attorney for Ariad, told the federal appeals court on Monday.
Evista generated $1.08 billion in global sales last year for Indianapolis-based Lilly, according to Bloomberg News. The company doesn’t break out sales of Xigris.
