On September 2, 2015, the Patent Trial and Appeal Board (PTAB) declined to institute an inter partes review (IPR) of a patent covering the multiple sclerosis drug Tecfidera®, held by Finnegan client Biogen MA. The IPR petition was filed by the Coalition for Affordable Drugs, a group of hedge funds managed by Kyle Bass.
In its written decision, the PTAB denied the institution on all grounds, stating that the petitioner failed to establish a likelihood that any of the challenged claims were unpatentable. This decision comes just three weeks after Finnegan filed a preliminary response on behalf of Biogen.