US District Court rules in Lilly's favour on Alimta vitamin regimen patent

Eli Lilly has announced that the US District Court for the Southern District of Indiana has ruled in the company's favour regarding infringement of the vitamin regimen patent for Alimta (pemetrexed for injection).

In the case of Eli Lilly and Company v. Teva Parenteral Medicines, Inc., et al., the court ruled that the vitamin regimen patent would be infringed by the generic challengers' proposed products. The patent provides intellectual property protection for Alimta until May 2022. In March 2014, the court previously upheld the validity of the vitamin regimen patent. The Alimta compound patent remains in force through early 2017.

"We are pleased with today's District Court ruling on Alimta finding the vitamin regimen patent would be infringed," said Michael J. Harrington, senior vice president and general counsel for Lilly. "The significant scientific research that Lilly performed in support of the vitamin regimen patent deserves intellectual property protection. We continue to emphasize that protection of intellectual property rights is extremely important to the biopharmaceutical industry and the patients we serve. These rights help support the development of the next generation of innovative medicines to treat unmet medical needs."