In Re Rosuvastatin Calcium Patent Litigation, MDL No. 08-1949-JJF.

CourtU.S. District Court — District of Delaware
Citation719 F.Supp.2d 388
Decision Date01 July 2010
PartiesIn re ROSUVASTATIN CALCIUM PATENT LITIGATION, AstraZeneca Pharmaceuticals LP, AstraZeneca UK Limited, IPR Pharmaceuticals Inc., and Shionogi Seiyaku Kabushiki Kaisha, Plaintiffs, v. Mylan Pharmaceuticals Inc., Defendant. AstraZeneca Pharmaceuticals LP, AstraZeneca UK Limited, IPR Pharmaceuticals Inc., and Shionogi Seiyaku Kabushiki Kaisha, Plaintiffs, v. Sun Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd., Defendant. AstraZeneca Pharmaceuticals LP, AstraZeneca UK Limited, IPR Pharmaceuticals Inc., and Shionogi Seiyaku Kabushiki Kaisha, Plaintiffs, v. Sandoz Inc., Defendant. AstraZeneca Pharmaceuticals LP, AstraZeneca UK Limited, IPR Pharmaceuticals Inc., and Shionogi Seiyaku Kabushiki Kaisha, Plaintiffs, v. Par Pharmaceuticals Inc., Defendant. AstraZeneca Pharmaceuticals LP, AstraZeneca UK Limited, IPR Pharmaceuticals Inc., and Shionogi Seiyaku Kabushiki Kaisha, Plaintiffs, v. Apotex Corp., Defendants. AstraZeneca Pharmaceuticals LP, AstraZeneca UK Limited, IPR Pharmaceuticals Inc., and Shionogi Seiyaku Kabushiki Kaisha, Plaintiffs, v. Aurobindo Pharma Ltd. and Aurobindo Pharma USA Inc., Defendants. AstraZeneca Pharmaceuticals LP, AstraZeneca UK Limited, IPR Pharmaceuticals Inc., and Shionogi Seiyaku Kabushiki Kaisha, Plaintiffs, v. Cobalt Pharmaceuticals Inc. and Cobalt Laboratories Inc., Defendants. AstraZeneca Pharmaceuticals LP, AstraZeneca UK Limited, IPR Pharmaceuticals Inc., and Shionogi Seiyaku Kabushiki Kaisha, Plaintiffs, v. Aurobindo Pharma Ltd. and Aurobindo Pharma USA Inc., Defendants. AstraZeneca Pharmaceuticals LP, AstraZeneca UK Limited, IPR Pharmaceuticals Inc., and Shionogi Seiyaku Kabushiki Kaisha, Plaintiffs, v. Teva Pharmaceuticals USA, Defendant.
Docket NumberMDL No. 08-1949-JJF.,07-807-JJF-LPS,08-426-JJF-LPS.,07-810-JJF-LPS,07-806-JJF-LPS,Civil Action No. 07-805-JJF-LPS,08-359-JJF-LPS,07-808-JJF-LPS,07-811-JJF-LPS,07-809-JJF-LPS

719 F.Supp.2d 388

In re ROSUVASTATIN CALCIUM PATENT LITIGATION,
AstraZeneca Pharmaceuticals LP, AstraZeneca UK Limited, IPR Pharmaceuticals Inc., and Shionogi Seiyaku Kabushiki Kaisha, Plaintiffs,
v.
Mylan Pharmaceuticals Inc., Defendant.

AstraZeneca Pharmaceuticals LP, AstraZeneca UK Limited, IPR Pharmaceuticals Inc., and Shionogi Seiyaku Kabushiki Kaisha, Plaintiffs,
v.
Sun Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd., Defendant.

AstraZeneca Pharmaceuticals LP, AstraZeneca UK Limited, IPR Pharmaceuticals Inc., and Shionogi Seiyaku Kabushiki Kaisha, Plaintiffs,
v.
Sandoz Inc., Defendant.

AstraZeneca Pharmaceuticals LP, AstraZeneca UK Limited, IPR Pharmaceuticals Inc., and Shionogi Seiyaku Kabushiki Kaisha, Plaintiffs,
v.
Par Pharmaceuticals Inc., Defendant.

AstraZeneca Pharmaceuticals LP, AstraZeneca UK Limited, IPR Pharmaceuticals Inc., and Shionogi Seiyaku Kabushiki Kaisha, Plaintiffs,
v.
Apotex Corp., Defendants.

AstraZeneca Pharmaceuticals LP, AstraZeneca UK Limited, IPR Pharmaceuticals Inc., and Shionogi Seiyaku Kabushiki Kaisha, Plaintiffs,
v.
Aurobindo Pharma Ltd. and Aurobindo Pharma USA Inc., Defendants.

AstraZeneca Pharmaceuticals LP, AstraZeneca UK Limited, IPR Pharmaceuticals Inc., and Shionogi Seiyaku Kabushiki Kaisha, Plaintiffs,
v.
Cobalt Pharmaceuticals Inc. and Cobalt Laboratories Inc., Defendants.

AstraZeneca Pharmaceuticals LP, AstraZeneca UK Limited, IPR Pharmaceuticals Inc., and Shionogi Seiyaku Kabushiki Kaisha, Plaintiffs,
v.
Aurobindo Pharma Ltd. and Aurobindo Pharma USA Inc., Defendants.

AstraZeneca Pharmaceuticals LP, AstraZeneca UK Limited, IPR Pharmaceuticals Inc., and Shionogi Seiyaku Kabushiki Kaisha, Plaintiffs,
v.
Teva Pharmaceuticals USA, Defendant.

MDL No. 08-1949-JJF.
Civil Action Nos. 07-805-JJF-LPS, 07-806-JJF-LPS, 07-807-JJF-LPS, 07-808-JJF-LPS, 07-809-JJF-LPS, 07-810-JJF-LPS, 07-811-JJF-LPS, 08-359-JJF-LPS, 08-426-JJF-LPS.

United States District Court,D. Delaware.

June 29, 2010.
As Revised July 1, 2010.


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Ford F. Farabow, Esquire; Charles E. Lipsey, Esquire; Kenneth M. Frankel, Esquire and York M. Faulkner, Esquire of Finnegan, Henderson, Farabow, Garrett & Dunner, L.L.P., Washington, D.C. Richard D. Kirk, Esquire and Stephen B. Brauerman, Esquire of Bayard, P.A., Wilmington, DE, for Defendant Aurobindo Pharma Ltd.

Richard A. Kaplan, Esquire; Ralph J. Gabric, Esquire; Jeffry M. Nichols, Esquire and Jason W. Schigelone, Esquire of Brinks Hofer Gilson & Lione, Chicago, IL, Joseph H. Huston, Jr., Esquire of Stevens & Lee, APC, Wilmington, DE, for Defendant Teva Pharmaceuticals USA, Inc.

William A. Rakoczy, Esquire; Paul J. Molino, Esquire; Deanne M. Mazzochi, Esquire; Joseph T. Jaros, Esquire; Tara M. Raghavan, Esquire and Eric R. Hunt, Esquire of Rakoczy Molino Mazzochi Siwik LLP, Chicago, IL, Mary B. Matterer, Esquire of Morris James LLP, Wilmington, DE, for Defendant Mylan Pharmaceuticals, Inc.

Henry J. Renk, Esquire of Fitzpatrick, Cella, Harper & Scinto, New York, NY, Mary W. Bourke, Esquire of Connolly Bove Lodge & Hutz LLP, Wilmington, DE, for Plaintiffs.

Thomas A. Stevens, Esquire of AstraZeneca Pharmaceuticals LP, Wilmington, DE, for Plaintiffs, AstraZeneca Pharmaceuticals LP, AstraZeneca UK Limited, and IPR Pharmaceuticals.

William R. Zimmerman, Esquire and Steven A. Maddox, Esquire of Knobbe, Martens, Olson & Bear, LLP, Washington, D.C. Payson Le Meilleur, Esquire of Knobbe, Martens, Olson & Bear, LLP, Irvine, CA, for Defendants, Cobalt Pharmaceuticals, Inc. and Cobalt Laboratories, Inc.

Charles B. Klein, Esquire; John K. Hsu, Esquire; Adam S. Nadelhaft, Esquire and Mark A. Smith, Esquire of Winston & Strawn LLP, Washington, D.C. Kevin G. Abrams, Esquire and John M. Seaman, Esquire of Abrams & Bayliss LLP, Wilmington, DE, for Defendant Sun Pharmaceutical Industries, Ltd.

Daniel G. Brown, Esquire of Wilson, Sonsini, Goodrich & Rosati, New York, NY, Dutch D. Chung, Esquire of Wilson, Sonsini, Goodrich & Rosati, Washington, D.C., Frederick L. Cottrell, III, Esquire and Steven J. Fineman, Esquire of Richards, Layton & Finger, P.A., Wilmington, DE, for Defendant Par Pharmaceuticals, Inc.

Robert B. Breisblatt, Esquire; Craig M. Kuchii, Esquire; Jeremy C. Daniel, Esquire; Stephen P. Benson, Esquire and Brian J. Sodikoff, Esquire of Katten Muchin Roseman LLP, Chicago, IL, Richard L. Horwitz, Esquire and David E. Moore, Esquire of Potter Anderson & Corroon LLP, Wilmington, DE, for Defendant Apotex Corp.

Thomas P. Heneghan, Esquire; Jeffrey S. Ward, Esquire; Edward J. Pardon, Esquire and Shane A. Brunner, Esquire of Merchant & Gould, Madison, WI.

MEMORANDUM OPINION
FARNAN, District Judge.

AstraZeneca Pharmaceuticals LP, AstraZeneca UK Limited, IPR Pharmaceuticals

719 F.Supp.2d 393

Inc. and Shionogi Seiyaku Kabushiki Kaisha (collectively, “Plaintiffs”) brought this action against several different generic drug manufacturers, Mylan Pharmaceuticals Inc., Sun Pharmaceutical Industries, Ltd., Par Pharmaceutical, Inc., Apotex Corp., Aurobindo Pharma Ltd., Cobalt Pharmaceuticals Inc., Cobalt Laboratories Inc., Teva Pharmaceuticals USA, Inc. (collectively, “Defendants”) 1 alleging infringement of U.S. Patent No. RE 37,314 (the “'314 patent”), covering rosuvastatin and its salts, based on Defendants' submission of an Abbreviated New Drug Application (“ANDA”) to the Food and Drug Administration (“FDA”) for approval to engage in the commercial manufacture, use, or sale in the United States of rosuvastatin calcium tablets. With the exception of Apotex Corp., Defendants admit that they have infringed claims 6 and 8 of the ' 314 patent by submitting its ANDA under 35 U.S.C. § 271(e)(2)(A). However, Defendants contend that claims 6 and 8 of the ' 314 patent are invalid and unenforceable. In addition, Defendants have challenged the standing of Plaintiff AstraZeneca Pharmaceuticals LP to sue for infringement and have filed motions to dismiss based on this issue. As for Defendant Apotex Corp., Apotex Corp. contends that it did not engage in an infringing act in the first instance, because it did not “submit” the ANDA within the meaning of Section 271(e)(2)(A).

With the exception of Defendant Apotex Corp., no Defendant contests that the Court has subject matter jurisdiction over this action pursuant to 28 U.S.C. §§ 1331 and 1338, as arising under the patent laws of the United States, Title 35 of the United States Code and the Abbreviated New Drug Application provisions of the Hatch-Waxman Amendments to the Federal Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act, 21 U.S.C. § 355(j). Personal jurisdiction and venue are also uncontested.

The Court held a Bench Trial on the issues of invalidity and unenforceability from February 22, 2010, through March 3, 2010, and reserved decision on the standing issue for resolution post-trial. Briefing on the various post-trial issues was not completed until June 4, 2010. 2 This Memorandum Opinion constitutes the Court's findings of fact and conclusions of law on the issues of standing, invalidity and unenforceability.

BACKGROUND
I. The Parties

Plaintiff AstraZeneca Pharmaceuticals LP is a Delaware corporation with its principal

719 F.Supp.2d 394

place of business in Wilmington, Delaware. Plaintiff AstraZeneca UK Limited is a corporation existing under the laws of the United Kingdom with its principal place of business in London, England. Plaintiff IPR Pharmaceuticals Inc. is a wholly owned subsidiary of AstraZeneca UK, existing under the laws of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico with a principal place of business in Canovanas, Puerto Rico. Plaintiff Shionogi Seiyaku Kabushiki Kaisha is a Japanese corporation with a principal place of business in Osaka Japan. Plaintiffs are engaged in the business of research, development, manufacturing and/or selling pharmaceutical products world-wide.

Defendant Apotex Corp. is a Delaware corporation with its principal place of business in Weston, Florida. Defendant Aurobindo Pharma Limited is a corporation existing under the laws of India with its principal place of business in Andhra Pradesh, India. Defendant Cobalt Pharmaceuticals Inc. is a Canadian corporation with its principal place of business in Ontario, Canada. Defendant Cobalt Laboratories Inc. is a Delaware corporation with its principal place of business in Bonita Springs, Florida. Defendant Mylan Pharmaceuticals Inc. is a West Virginia corporation with its principal place of business in Morgantown, West Virginia. Defendant Par Pharmaceutical, Inc. is a Delaware corporation with its principal place of business in Woodcliff Lake, New Jersey. Defendant Sun Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd. is a corporation existing under the laws of India with its principal place of business in Maharashtra, India. Defendant Teva Pharmaceuticals USA, Inc. is a Delaware corporation with its principal place of business in North Wales, Pennsylvania. Defendants are engaged in the business of making, selling and/or distributing generic drugs in the United States.

II. The Patent Generally

The '314 patent is a reissue of U.S. Patent No. 5,260,440 (the “'440 patent”), which pertains to rosuvastatin and its salts, which are compounds useful in the treatment of hypercholesterolemia, hyperlipoproteinemia and atherosclerosis. (PTX-682 at 1:26-28; PTX-1054 at 1:32-34.) The invention secured in the '440 patent was made by co-inventors Kentaro Hirai, Teruyuki Ishiba, Haruo Koike and Masamichi Watanabe. Plaintiff Shionogi Seiyaku Kabushiki Kaisha is the owner of the '440 patent, and after consummation of a license agreement with the AstraZeneca-affiliated Plaintiffs, an application was made to reissue the '440 patent. The drug covered by the reissued ' 314 patent is known as rosuvastatin calcium and marketed and sold by the AstraZeneca-affiliated Plaintiffs under the name CRESTOR ® as a result of a licensing agreement between Shionogi and the AstraZeneca-affiliated Plaintiffs.

Claims 6 and 8 of the '314...

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6 practice notes
  • AstraZeneca UK Ltd. v. Aurobindo Pharma Ltd. (In re Rosuvastatin Calcium Patent Litig.), Nos. 2010–1460
    • United States
    • United States Courts of Appeals. United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit
    • December 14, 2012
    ...because of the “chaos” and “confusion” that ensued after Kitamura resigned in July 1992. AstraZeneca Pharms. LP v. Mylan Pharms. Inc., 719 F.Supp.2d 388, 400 (D.Del.2010). Kitamura, however, had already filed the '440 application—with its overlap with Sandoz—when she left Shionogi. There is......
  • AstraZeneca UK Ltd. v. Aurobindo Pharma Ltd. (In re Rosuvastatin Calcium Patent Litig.), 2010-1460
    • United States
    • United States Courts of Appeals. United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit
    • December 14, 2012
    ...because of the "chaos" and "confusion" that ensued after Kitamura resigned in July 1992. AstraZeneca Pharms. LP v. Mylan Pharms. Inc., 719 F. Supp. 2d 388, 400 (D. Del. 2010). Kitamura, however, had already filed the '440 application—with its overlap with Sandoz—when she left Shionogi. Ther......
  • Astrazeneca U.K. Ltd. v. Watson Labs., Inc., C.A. No. 10–915–LPS.
    • United States
    • United States District Courts. 3th Circuit. United States District Court (Delaware)
    • November 21, 2012
    ...Farnan rejected Cobalt's defense that the '314 patent was invalid and unenforceable. See In re Rosuvastatin Calcium Patent Litigation, 719 F.Supp.2d 388, 410 (D.Del.2010) (hereinafter the “2010 calcium litigation”). On August 10, 2010, the 2010 calcium litigation defendants filed their noti......
  • Astrazeneca Pharms. LP v. Apotex Corp., Nos. 2011–1182
    • United States
    • United States Courts of Appeals. United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit
    • February 9, 2012
    ...[669 F.3d 1375] patent expires in 2016. Appellees have separately appealed that decision. In re Rosuvastatin Calcium Patent Litig., 719 F.Supp.2d 388 (D.Del.2010), appeal docketed, Nos. 10–1460 to –1473 (Fed.Cir. Aug. 13, 2010). While the '314 infringement matter remained pending before the......
  • Request a trial to view additional results
5 cases
  • AstraZeneca UK Ltd. v. Aurobindo Pharma Ltd. (In re Rosuvastatin Calcium Patent Litig.), Nos. 2010–1460
    • United States
    • United States Courts of Appeals. United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit
    • December 14, 2012
    ...because of the “chaos” and “confusion” that ensued after Kitamura resigned in July 1992. AstraZeneca Pharms. LP v. Mylan Pharms. Inc., 719 F.Supp.2d 388, 400 (D.Del.2010). Kitamura, however, had already filed the '440 application—with its overlap with Sandoz—when she left Shionogi. There is......
  • AstraZeneca UK Ltd. v. Aurobindo Pharma Ltd. (In re Rosuvastatin Calcium Patent Litig.), 2010-1460
    • United States
    • United States Courts of Appeals. United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit
    • December 14, 2012
    ...because of the "chaos" and "confusion" that ensued after Kitamura resigned in July 1992. AstraZeneca Pharms. LP v. Mylan Pharms. Inc., 719 F. Supp. 2d 388, 400 (D. Del. 2010). Kitamura, however, had already filed the '440 application—with its overlap with Sandoz—when she left Shionogi. Ther......
  • Astrazeneca U.K. Ltd. v. Watson Labs., Inc., C.A. No. 10–915–LPS.
    • United States
    • United States District Courts. 3th Circuit. United States District Court (Delaware)
    • November 21, 2012
    ...Farnan rejected Cobalt's defense that the '314 patent was invalid and unenforceable. See In re Rosuvastatin Calcium Patent Litigation, 719 F.Supp.2d 388, 410 (D.Del.2010) (hereinafter the “2010 calcium litigation”). On August 10, 2010, the 2010 calcium litigation defendants filed their noti......
  • McDowell v. United States, Civil Action No. 12-1302-SLR-SRF
    • United States
    • United States District Courts. 3th Circuit. United States District Court (Delaware)
    • May 10, 2013
    ...be in the zone of interests protected by the statute or constitutional provision at issue." In re Rosuvastatin Calcium Patent Litig., 719 F. Supp. 2d 388, 398 (D. Del. 2010) (citing Valley Forge Christian College v. Americans United for Separation of Church & State, 454 U.S. 464, 474-75 (19......
  • Request a trial to view additional results

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