Update on Sanofi/B-MS Apotek injunction

Hearings on the injunction filed against Canadian generics firm Apotek for infringement of intellectual property rights on the blockbuster blood-thinning agent Plavix (clopidogrel) by French drug major Sanofi-Aventis, the originator, and its US licensee Bristol-Myers Squibb started as this article was going on line.

According to analysts at Lehman Brothers, Judge Stein, who is presiding over the case, is aware of the urgency of the matter and has given each party only one day each to present their case. Apotek has already launched its generic version of Plavix and, according to some reports, has put as much as 12 months of inventory into the system.

The analysts hypothesize that, for a successful result to the preliminary injunction from Sanofi/B-MS' point of view, the Judge needs to rule that Apotek must stop selling generic clopidogrel and that wholesalers/pharmacy benefit managers are prevented from selling any inventory shipped.