A federal judge has denied a bid by Sandoz Inc. for an interlocutory appeal of a claims construction ruling that resulted in partial summary judgment for Wyeth in its patent infringement suit over a proposed generic version of depression and anxiety drug Effexor®. Judge James C. Denver III of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of North Carolina ruled Wednesday that Sandoz failed to meet the standard necessary for an interlocutory appeal. In March, Sandoz asked Judge Denver to immediately certify his order granting summary judgment to Wyeth for an interlocutory appeal, saying that seven different courts have examined Wyeth's patent claims and come to different conclusions on how they should be constructed. In denying the motion for appeal, Judge Denver found that many more courts had adopted the broader construction of the term ‘extended release formulation’, so “no substantial ground for difference of opinion exists as to whether 'extended release formulation' is limited to specific ingredients,” such that an interlocutory appeal was warranted. The judge also ruled that because the issues raised by Sandoz were not controlling questions of law, an interlocutory appeal would not materially advance the litigation. Wyeth is represented by Finnegan.