Teva Pharmaceuticals USA v. Novartis Pharmaceuticals Corporation

482 F.3d 1318
CourtCourt of Appeals for the Federal Circuit
DecidedMarch 30, 2007
Docket2006-1181
StatusPublished

This text of 482 F.3d 1318 (Teva Pharmaceuticals USA v. Novartis Pharmaceuticals Corporation) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Teva Pharmaceuticals USA v. Novartis Pharmaceuticals Corporation, 482 F.3d 1318 (Fed. Cir. 2007).

Opinions

GAJARSA, Circuit Judge.

Teva Pharmaceuticals (“Teva”) appeals from the dismissal of its declaratory judgment action by the United States District Court for the District of New Jersey. The district court, relying on our two-part declaratory judgment test for patent non-infringement as modified by our recent decision in Teva Pharmaceuticals USA, Inc., v. Pfizer, Inc., 395 F.3d 1324 (2005) (“Pfizer’’), found that Teva failed to establish a reasonable apprehension of imminent suit and that it therefore lacked jurisdiction over the declaratory judgment action. In light of the Supreme Court’s recent decision in MedImmune, Inc. v. Genentech, Inc., — U.S. -, 127 S.Ct. 764, 166 L.Ed.2d 604 (2007), which finds that our declaratory judgment test for non-infringement or invalidity “conflicts” with its precedent, we reverse.

I. BACKGROUND

Novartis holds a New Drug Application (“NDA”) for three strengths of the drug Famvir®. Upon filing its Famvir® NDA, Novartis listed five patents in the Food and Drug Administration’s (“FDA”) Orange Book,- each of which covers and is directed to various aspects of Famvir®, including U.S Patent Nos: 5,246,937 (“'937 patent”); 5,840,763 (“'763 patent”); 5,866,-581 (“'581 patent”); 5,916,893 (“'893 patent”); and 6,124,304 (“'304 patent”). The '937 patent is directed to the active ingredient in Famvir®, famciclovir, while the remaining Orange Book patents are directed to methods of therapeutic use (“method patents”) of Famvir®. The '937 patent expires in 2010, but the related therapeutic use patents do not expire until 2014-15.

In 2004, Teva filed an Abbreviated New Drug Application (“ANDA”) with the FDA for generic famciclovir tablets in which Teva certified under paragraph IV of 21 U.S.C. § 355(j)(2)(A)(vii) that its drug did not infringe any of the five Novartis Fam-vir® Orange Book patents or that the patents were invalid. Teva’s paragraph IV certifications constitute technical infringement under 35 U.S.C. § 271(e)(1). Accordingly, Novartis had 45 days to sue on these patents in order to invoke a statutorily mandated 30-month stay to delay immediate FDA approval of Teva’s famciclo-vir ANDA. See 21 U.S.C. § 355(j)(5)(B)(iii).

Novartis brought an infringement suit against Teva on the '937 patent alone and [1335]*1335did not include in the action the related therapeutic use patents. The infringement suit is pending in the United States District Court for the District of New Jersey. Novartis Pharm. Corp. v. Teva Pharm. USA Inc., No. 05-1887, 2005 WL 3664014 (D.N.J.2005).

After Novartis filed suit, Teva brought this declaratory judgment action on the four remaining method patents under 21 U.S.C. § 355(j)(5)(C) and 35 U.S.C. § 271(e)(5) to establish “patent certainty.” Title 21 U.S.C. § 355(j)(5)(C) is a 2003 amendment to the ANDA statute entitled “civil action to obtain patent certainty.” Under this provision, if the patentee or NDA holder does not bring an infringement suit within 45 days after receiving notice of a paragraph IV certification, the ANDA applicant may bring a civil action for a declaratory judgment that the patent at issue is invalid or will not be infringed by the drug for which the ANDA was submitted. Id. Title 35 U.S.C. § 271(e)(5) is a 2003 amendment to the patent statute that works in conjunction with the 2003 amendment to the ANDA statute to provide that in a civil action to obtain patent certainty, federal courts “shall, to the extent consistent with the Constitution, have subject matter jurisdiction in any action brought ... under § 2201 of title 28 for a declaratory judgment that such patent is invalid or not infringed.” Teva argues that by bringing suit on the '937 patent alone in the first instance, “Novartis has sought to put Teva to the hard choice of either launching at risk of massive liability for patent infringement when the '937 patent expires or Teva prevails in the pending infringement action, or foregoing that opportunity and thereby effectively extending the term of the '937 patent.” Appellant Br. 9 (footnotes omitted).

Novartis moved to dismiss for lack of subject matter jurisdiction, arguing that Teva had no reasonable apprehension that it would be sued by Novartis for infringing the four method patents. In response, Teva argued that: (1) Novartis had already sued Teva on the underlying composition patent; (2) listing patents in the Orange Book established infringement as a matter of law; (3) Novartis had a history of aggressively suing generic drug companies; and (4) Novartis had declined to give Teva a covenant not to sue.

The district court dismissed Teva’s declaratory judgment action requesting “patent certainty” on the four method patents. Teva Pharm., USA Inc., v. Novartis Pharm. Corp., No. 05-2881, slip op. at 10, 2005 WL 3619389 (D.N.J. Dec. 12, 2005). In so doing, the district court applied our two prong “reasonable-apprehension-of-imminent-suit” test from Pfizer.1 395 F.3d at 1332. After comparing the facts of this case to those in Pfizer, the district court found that Teva had failed to establish a reasonable apprehension of imminent suit and that the district court therefore lacked jurisdiction over the declaratory judgment action. Teva, slip op. at 10. Teva timely appealed to this court. We have jurisdiction under 28 U.S.C. § 1295(a)(1).

The district court’s dismissal of Teva’s declaratory judgment action for lack of jurisdiction presents a question of law that we review without deference. See Pfizer, 395 F.3d at 1332 (citing Gen-Probe Inc. v. Vysis, Inc., 359 F.3d 1376, 1379 [1336]*1336(Fed.Cir.2004)). The determination of whether an actual controversy exists under the Declaratory Judgment Act in a patent case is a question of law that we review de novo. BP Chems. Ltd. v. Union Carbide Corp., 4 F.3d 975, 978 (Fed.Cir.1993). The district court’s factual findings supporting its determination are reviewed for clear error. Id.

II. ANALYSIS

A.

Our starting point in analyzing Teva’s appeal is the Declaratory Judgment Act, 28 U.S.C. § 2201(a) under which Teva filed this suit. The relevant text of the Act reads:

In a case of actual controversy within its jurisdiction ... any court of the United States, upon the filing of an appropriate pleading, may declare the rights and other legal relations of any interested party seeking such declaration, whether or not further relief is or could be sought.

28 U.S.C.

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Bluebook (online)
482 F.3d 1318, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/teva-pharmaceuticals-usa-v-novartis-pharmaceuticals-corporation-cafc-2007.