Ariad, co-plaintiffs awarded more than $65 million in Lilly NF-(kappa)B patent infringement lawsuit

By Lisa Kerner

Erie, Pa., May 4 - The jury in the U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts found in favor of Ariad Pharmaceuticals, Inc. and its co-plaintiffs in their lawsuit against Eli Lilly and Co. alleging infringement of the plaintiffs' U.S. patent covering methods of treating human disease by regulating NF-(kappa)B cell-signaling activity.

The jury ruled unanimously that the claims of the NF-(kappa)B patent asserted in the lawsuit are valid and infringed by Lilly with respect to Lilly's osteoporosis drug, Evista and Lilly's septic shock drug Xigris, according to a company news release.

As a result, the jury awarded damages to Ariad and its co-plaintiffs in the amount of about $65.2 million to be paid by Lilly based on U.S. sales of Evista and Xigris from June 25, 2002 through February 28, 2006.

In addition, further damages equal to 2.3% of U.S. sales of Evista and Xigris through the year 2019 will be paid on an ongoing basis.

Ariad's co-plaintiffs are Massachusetts Institute of Technology, The Whitehead Institute for Biomedical Research and The President and Fellows of Harvard College.

Located in Cambridge, Mass., Ariad develops medicines to treat cancer by regulating cell signaling with small molecules.

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