Following a quiet stretch, the legal back-and-forth over migraine meds from Teva and Eli Lilly has resurfaced, with Teva gaining favor on appeal after a 2023 reversal of its prior patent win.
The Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit on Thursday issued a decision (PDF) reinstating an earlier victory for Teva in the case, which the company filed in 2018, that Lilly’s rival product, Emgality, infringes its migraine drug Ajovy. The judgment restores the $176.5 verdict that Teva first won in a Boston court in 2022.
Teva had originally accused Lilly of violating multiple Ajovy patents tied to methods of using antibodies for migraine treatment by inhibiting peptides. But despite the Israeli-American drugmaker’s initial victory before a federal jury, a judge for the United States District Court for the District of Massachusetts reversed that decision in 2023.
At the time, Judge Allison Burroughs concurred with Lilly that Emgality’s antibody differed from Ajovy’s and that Teva’s asserted patent claims were too broad.
“We have considered Lilly’s remaining arguments and find them unpersuasive,” the Federal Circuit wrote in this week’s decision. “For the foregoing reasons, we reverse the district court’s [judgment] and remand for any necessary or appropriate further proceedings consistent with this opinion.”
Lilly is disappointed with the decision and disagrees with it, a company spokesperson said in an emailed statement.
“We are evaluating all available options,” the spokesperson said. “Importantly, this decision does not impact our ability to provide Emgality to patients, and we remain fully committed to the patients who depend on it.”
For its part, Teva is "pleased that the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit reinstated the jury verdict," with a spokesperson telling Fierce that the decision "validates the strength of Teva’s intellectual property."
Emgality and Ajovy were approved just 13 days apart in September of 2018. The drugs boast a similar mechanism of action and work by inhibiting the calcitonin gene-related peptides (CGRPs) implicated in migraine headaches.
Both meds are approved for migraine prevention, while Emgality also boasts an FDA nod to treat cluster headaches.
The appeals court justified its position by finding that Teva’s patents appropriately focused on the use of anti-CGRP antagonist antibodies to treat headaches, rather than the class of antibodies itself.
Editor's note: This story has been updated with statements from Teva and Lilly.