Onyx Therapeutics, Inc. v. CIPLA Limited

CourtDistrict Court, D. Delaware
DecidedMay 4, 2020
Docket1:16-cv-00988
StatusUnknown

This text of Onyx Therapeutics, Inc. v. CIPLA Limited (Onyx Therapeutics, Inc. v. CIPLA Limited) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, D. Delaware primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Onyx Therapeutics, Inc. v. CIPLA Limited, (D. Del. 2020).

Opinion

IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE DISTRICT OF DELAWARE ONYX THERAPEUTICS, INC., : : Plaintiff, : : v. : C.A. No. 16-988-LPS : CONSOLIDATED CIPLA LIMITED, et al., : : Defendants. : Jack B. Blumenfeld, Karen Jacobs, Megan E. Dellinger, MORRIS, NICHOLS, ARSHT & TUNNELL LLP, Wilmington, DE Lisa B. Pensabene, Hassen Sayeed, Will Autz, Margaret O’Boyle, Caitlin P. Hogan, Carolyn Wall, Eberle Schultz, James Yi Li, Samantha M. Indelicato, Mark A. Hayden, O’MELVENY & MYERS LLP, New York, NY Meng Xu, O’MELVENY & MYERS LLP, Newport Beach, CA John R. Labbé, Kevin M. Flowers, Thomas R. Burns, MARSHALL, GERSTEIN & BORUN LLP, Chicago, IL Wendy A. Whiteford, Brian Kao, C. Nichole Gifford, Joseph E. Lasher, AMGEN, INC., Thousand Oaks, CA Attorneys for Plaintiff Benjamin J. Schladweiler, GREENBERG TRAURIG, LLP, Wilmington, DE Richard G. Greco, RICHARD G. GRECO PC, Rochester, NY Gurpreet Singh Walia, FISHER BROYLES LLP, New York, NY Attorneys for Defendants OPINION May 4, 2020 Wilmington, Delaware TABLE OF CONTENTS Findings of Fact .................................................................................................................. 2 I. Introduction ........................................................................................................... 2 II. Patents-in-Suit ....................................................................................................... 4 A. U.S. Patent No. 7,417,042 ................................................................................. 4 B. U.S. Patent No. 8,207,125 ................................................................................. 7 C. U.S. Patent No. 7,737,112 ................................................................................. 9 III. Witnesses ............................................................................................................. 10 A. Onyx’s Expert Witnesses................................................................................. 10 B. Cipla’s Expert Witnesses ................................................................................. 11 C. Fact Witnesses ................................................................................................. 12 IV. Person Of Ordinary Skill In The Art ................................................................... 13 V. Proteasome And Myeloma .................................................................................. 14 VI. YU-101 ................................................................................................................ 15 VII. Proteolix........................................................................................................... 17 VIII. Proteolix’s 2003 Research Plan ....................................................................... 20 IX. Assignments To Proteolix ................................................................................... 24 X. The Carfilzomib Compound................................................................................ 26 XI. The Carfilzomib Formulation.............................................................................. 27 XII. Additional Facts Relating To Obviousness ..................................................... 28 A. Prior Art Compounds....................................................................................... 30 B. Prior Art Formulations..................................................................................... 38 Legal Standards ................................................................................................................. 45 I. Presumption Of Validity .................................................................................. 45 II. Obviousness ..................................................................................................... 46 III. Incorrect Inventorship ...................................................................................... 47 IV. Obviousness-Type Double Patenting .............................................................. 48

i Discussion ......................................................................................................................... 49 I. Obviousness: Compound Patents ........................................................................ 49 A. Lead Compound Analysis ............................................................................... 49 B. YU-101 Is Not A Lead Compound For Development Of A Drug Product ..... 51 C. Cipla Has Failed To Meet Its Burden With Respect To Its Newfound Focus on Development Of A Molecular Probe………………………………55 D. The Morpholino Methylene Modification Would Not Have Been Obvious...59 E. Objective Indicia Of Nonobviousness ............................................................. 64 F. Conclusion ....................................................................................................... 66 II. Incorrect Inventorship: Compound Patents ......................................................... 66 A. Conception By Another ................................................................................... 67 B. Communication To Named Inventor ............................................................... 69 C. Section 102(f) Prior Art ................................................................................... 69 III. Double Patenting: Compound Patents................................................................. 71 IV. Obviousness: Formulation Patent........................................................................ 75 V. Double Patenting: Formulation Patent ................................................................ 76 A. Claim 31 .......................................................................................................... 76 B. Claim 32 .......................................................................................................... 78 Conclusion ........................................................................................................................ 80

ii STARK, U.S District Judge: Onyx Therapeutics, Inc. (“Onyx” or “Plaintiff”) sued numerous parties – Apotex Corp., Apotex Inc., Aurobindo Pharma USA Inc., Breckenridge Pharmaceutical Inc., Cipla USA, Inc., Cipla Ltd., Dr. Reddy’s Laboratories Inc., Dr. Reddy’s Laboratories Ltd., Fresenius Kabi USA

LLC, Fresenius Kabi USA Inc., Innopharma, Inc., MSN Laboratories Private Ltd., MSN Pharmaceuticals Inc., Qilu Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd., Qilu Pharma, Inc., and Sagent Pharmaceuticals, Inc. – in this consolidated action brought pursuant to the Hatch-Waxman Act, 35 U.S.C. § 271(e). (See D.I. 1, 21) All of the original defendants other than Cipla USA, Inc. and Cipla Ltd. (collectively, hereinafter, “Cipla” or “Defendants”) entered into consent judgments with Onyx and were dismissed. (See D.I. 114, 504-09, 513-14) Cipla seeks to market a new drug bioequivalent to Onyx’s product KYPROLIS® (carfilzomib) for injection (“Kyprolis”). (D.I. 1 at ¶ 8) Cipla has stipulated that its proposed product (hereinafter, the “Cipla ANDA Product” or “Cipla’s ANDA Product”) infringes Onyx’s U.S. Patent Nos. 7,417,042 (“the ’042 Patent”) and 8,207,125 (“the ’125 Patent”) (collectively,

“the Compound Patents”) as well as Onyx’s U.S. Patent No. 7,737,112 (“the ’112 Patent” or “the Formulation Patent” and, together with the Compound Patents, “the Asserted Patents”). (See D.I. 1; see also D.I. 476-1 Ex. 1 (Stipulated Facts) (“SF”) ¶ 85; D.I. 218) Cipla contends that the Asserted Patents are invalid. (See D.I. 330) In May 2019, the Court held a five-day bench trial on Cipla’s invalidity affirmative defenses and counterclaims. (See D.I. 523-29) (“Tr.”) Thereafter, the parties submitted post- trial briefing (D.I. 521, 533, 536) and proposed findings of fact (D.I. 522, 532).

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Onyx Therapeutics, Inc. v. CIPLA Limited, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/onyx-therapeutics-inc-v-cipla-limited-ded-2020.