Great read!!!!
Press Release Source: Agvar Chemicals Inc.
Agvar Chemicals Sues Barr Laboratories, Teva Pharmaceuticals USA in Connection With Barr's Generic Alternative to Allegra(R)
Tuesday October 11, 10:51 am ET
LITTLE FALLS, N.J., Oct. 11 /PRNewswire/ -- Agvar Chemicals Inc. announced today that it has joined with Ranbaxy Laboratories Limited and Ranbaxy Pharmaceuticals, Inc. as plaintiffs in a lawsuit against Barr Laboratories, Inc. and Teva Pharmaceuticals USA, Inc. for damages and equitable relief for breach of contract, fraud and tortious interference relating to Barr's development and commercialization of a generic alternative to the allergy medication Allegra®.
The lawsuit, filed in New Jersey Superior Court, alleges that Agvar and Ranbaxy entered into a contractual relationship with Barr Labs in May of 2000 to supply fexofenadine HCL API (Allegra's® active pharmaceutical ingredient) to enable Barr to obtain FDA approval for a generic alternative, with 180 day exclusivity rights to follow.
As a result of their contributions the project was successful and Barr Labs received final FDA approval on August 31, 2005. However, on September 6, 2005, Barr Labs announced that it had decided not to manufacture or market its product and bartered away its 180-day exclusivity marketing rights to Teva USA. While immensely profitable to Barr and Teva, this arrangement left Agvar and Ranbaxy out in the cold despite their valuable contributions to the project.
Dr. Agnes Varis, President of Agvar, commented, "Barr Labs' secretly partnering with Teva while continuing to encourage and use our resources and expertise to obtain FDA approval and then cutting us out of the business is simply shocking. Although Barr's Bruce Downey has described himself as a 'hustler', I am personally disappointed and outraged that he and Teva have engaged in these unseemly acts
"Regardless of their big money and power, the Barr-Teva cabal will not succeed," Dr. Varis continued. "We will prevail on our claims because they not only are right, they are just."
Agvar Chemicals Inc. is one of the leading marketers of active pharmaceutical ingredients (API) in the USA, representing chemical producers from Western and Eastern Europe, Asia and India. Founded in 1970 by Dr. Agnes Varis, Agvar's customer base includes the leading generic drug manufacturers in the USA as well as the multi-source divisions of a number of innovator companies. |
