District Court Grants Summary Judgment in Favor of Finnegan Client AstraZeneca

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

October 21, 2010

Contact:    Eric J. Fues, 202.408.4245 

                    Partner

District Court Grants Summary Judgment in Favor of AstraZeneca Finding Invalid All Asserted Claims of Teva’s Patent

WASHINGTON, DC - The United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania granted summary judgment of patent invalidity due to prior invention thereby terminating an action that Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd. brought against firm clients AstraZeneca Pharmaceuticals, Inc. and several other AstraZeneca entities.  Teva alleged that its patent covered AstraZeneca’s blockbuster anti-cholesterol drug, Crestor®, and sought damages and fees.  AstraZeneca moved for summary judgment of invalidity due to its prior invention of the Crestor® formulation.  Judge William H. Yohn, Jr. found that AstraZeneca had invented first and had not abandoned, suppressed, or concealed its invention.  Accordingly, Judge Yohn invalidated all asserted claims of Teva’s patent and entered judgment in AstraZeneca’s favor.

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With more than 375 intellectual property lawyers, Finnegan is one of the largest IP law firms in the world. From offices in Washington, DC; Atlanta, Georgia; Cambridge, Massachusetts; Palo Alto, California; Reston, Virginia; Brussels, Belgium; Shanghai, China; Taipei, Taiwan; and Tokyo, Japan, the firm practices all aspects of patent, trademark, copyright, and trade secret law, including counseling, prosecution, licensing, and litigation. Finnegan also represents clients on IP issues related to international trade, portfolio management, the Internet, e-commerce, government contracts, antitrust, and unfair competition. For additional information on the firm, please visit www.finnegan.com. 

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