Four years of ups and downs in the patent infringement dispute between Centocor, a Johnson & Johnson subsidiary, and Abbott Laboratories recently took a huge turn in Abbott\u2019s favor. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit ruled that Centocor\u2019s patent claims were invalid and overturned a $1.67 billion verdict against Abbott Laboratories.<\/p>\n
The dispute arises because of Abbott\u2019s Humira drug, which produces pharmaceutical antibodies to treat arthritis and other immune conditions. Back in 1991, Centocor submitted a patent application for its drug that contained both a mouse and chimeric antibody. Simultaneously, Abbott pushed to create a fully-human antibody.<\/p>\n
Centocor proceeded with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office submitting many continuation-in-part applications, including one in 1994 detailing the chimeric antibody with a mouse variable region. In 1996, Abbott\u2019s patent entailed a \u201chigh affinity, neutralizing, A2 specific, fully-human antibody.\u201d By 2002, Abbott was given the green light to market Humira. The patent for (more…)<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Four years of ups and downs in the patent infringement dispute between Centocor, a Johnson & Johnson subsidiary, and Abbott Laboratories recently took a huge turn in Abbott\u2019s favor. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit ruled that…<\/span><\/p>\n