Corixa and GlaxoSmithKline File Suit Against IDEC Pharmaceuticals
Corporation for Patent Infringement
SEATTLE & PHILADELPHIA--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Sept. 12, 2001--Corixa Corporation (Nasdaq:CRXA - news) and GlaxoSmithKline (NYSE:GSK - news) today announced that they have filed a lawsuit against IDEC Pharmaceuticals Corporation for patent infringement in connection with IDEC's Zevalin(TM) product for the treatment of non-Hodgkin's lymphoma.
The lawsuit was filed today in U.S. District Court in Delaware by Corixa, its wholly owned subsidiary, Coulter Pharmaceutical, Inc. and GlaxoSmithKline, and alleges that IDEC Pharmaceuticals infringes U.S. Patent Nos. 5,595,721, 6,015,542 and 6,090,365. Issued claims in these patents cover imaging, composition of matter and methods-of-use in the treatment of non-Hodgkin's lymphoma.
Through the lawsuit, Corixa and GlaxoSmithKline are asking the court to declare that IDEC is willfully infringing Corixa's patents. Corixa and GlaxoSmithKline are seeking available remedies under the patent laws.
``We are proud of our leading innovations in a variety of therapeutic areas, including non-Hodgkin's lymphoma, and are committed to enforcing our patent rights through methods that consider the needs of patients afflicted with non-Hodgkin's lymphoma and protect our shareholders,'' said Steven Gillis, Ph.D., chairman and chief executive officer of Corixa. ``We intend to vigorously enforce our patent position. We have extended an offer to IDEC to discuss a license outside of a litigation setting.''
``Intellectual property is one of the most important foundations of the research-driven pharmaceutical industry,'' said Kevin Lokay, vice president of Oncology at GlaxoSmithKline. ``It is our desire to protect our intellectual property without limiting patient access to the medicines they need. Therefore, we are hoping to work constructively with IDEC toward that goal.''
On September 11, 2001, Corixa learned of a complaint filed by IDEC against Corixa, Coulter Pharmaceutical, Inc. and the Regents of the University of Michigan for declaratory judgment of patent non-infringement and invalidity of certain patents relating to radioimmunotherapy. At the time of this announcement, neither Corixa nor Coulter had been served with this lawsuit nor had either party been contacted by IDEC.
Investor Conference Call
Corixa and GlaxoSmithKline will conduct a conference call and webcast regarding today's announcement once the financial markets return to normal operation.<snip> |
