Teva Provides Update On Generic Neurontin Litigation
Jerusalem, Israel, September 21, 2007 - Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd. (NASDAQ: TEVA) announced today that the United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit has reversed and remanded an August 2005 summary judgment decision by the U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey with regards to Pfizer Inc.'s U.S. Patent No. 6,054,482. The District Court had granted summary judgment in Teva's favor on the issue of non-infringement with regard to the patent, which is otherwise set to expire in 2017.
The Court of Appeals affirmed the claim construction, but found that there were facts in dispute that prevented summary judgment and required a trial. The case has been remanded to the District Court for further proceedings, which will involve Teva's allegations of invalidity and non-infringement.
Teva's Gabapentin is the AB-rated generic equivalent of Pfizer's anticonvulsant, Neurontin®. The Company commenced shipment of Gabapentin Capsules and Tablets in October 2004 and December 2004, respectively.
Safe Harbor Statement under the U. S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995: This release contains forward-looking statements, which express the current beliefs and expectations of management. Such statements are based on management's current beliefs and expectations and involve a number of known and unknown risks and uncertainties that could cause Teva's future results, performance or achievements to differ significantly from the results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. Important factors that could cause or contribute to such differences include risks relating to: Teva's ability to successfully develop and commercialize additional pharmaceutical products, the introduction of competing generic equivalents, the extent to which Teva may obtain U.S. market exclusivity for certain of its new generic products and regulatory changes that may prevent Teva from utilizing exclusivity periods, competition from brand-name companies that are under increased pressure to counter generic products, or competitors that seek to delay the introduction of generic products, the impact of consolidation of our distributors and customers, potential liability for sales of generic products prior to a final resolution of outstanding patent litigation, including that relating to the generic versions of Allegra® and Neurontin®, the effects of competition on our innovative products, especially Copaxone® sales, the impact of pharmaceutical industry regulation and pending legislation that could affect the pharmaceutical industry, the difficulty of predicting U.S. Food and Drug Administration, European Medicines Agency and other regulatory authority approvals, the regulatory environment and changes in the health policies and structures of various countries, our ability to achieve expected results though our innovative R&D efforts, Teva's ability to successfully identify, consummate and integrate acquisitions, potential exposure to product liability claims to the extent not covered by insurance, dependence on the effectiveness of our patents and other protections for innovative products, significant operations worldwide that may be adversely affected by terrorism, political or economical instability or major hostilities, supply interruptions or delays that could result from the complex manufacturing of our products and our global supply chain, environmental risks, fluctuations in currency, exchange and interest rates, and other factors that are discussed in Teva's Annual Report on Form 20-F and its other filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. Forward-looking statements speak only as of the date on which they are made and the Company undertakes no obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statement, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.