Supreme Court sends patent cases back to appeals court
By Lawrence Hurley WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The Supreme Court on Monday sent three patent cases, including one dispute over Shire Plc’sLialda drug, back to a lower court for further proceedings in light of a ruling the justices issued last week. In last week’s ruling concerning a dispute over Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd's Copaxone, its top-selling multiple sclerosis drug, the high court said the appeals court had used the wrong legal analysis. When considering the scope of patent claims construction, the appeals court must defer to a federal district judge unless there is evidence of "clear error,” the court found. In the Shire case, the appeals court had in a March 2014 ruling thrown out a lower court decision in the company’s favor over Lialda, a drug that treats inflammatory bowel conditions.
