Novartis AG vs. Bausch & Lomb
This article was originally published in The Gray Sheet
Executive Summary
Ciba Vision parent files patent infringement suit in Dublin alleging B&L PureVision extended-wear contact lenses infringe Irish Patent 819258 for Ciba's Focus Night & Day lenses. The firm is seeking an injunction on all manufacturing and sales. B&L world manufacturing headquarters for PureVision are located in Waterford, Ireland; the firm moved the plant from its Rochester, N.Y. site last year. B&L may not make or sell the lenses in the U.S. until April 2005, following a verdict on a separate patent case (1"The Gray Sheet" Feb. 17, 2003, p. 11). If Ciba prevails in Ireland, PureVision would be banned from the country until 2016. A similar suit involving the "Nicolson" patent is ongoing in federal district court in Gainesville, Ga.; a trial date will be set this year. The Nicolson patent expires in 2014...