Paul B. Simboli, Esq.'s Linkedin Analytics

Depomed Wins Patent Suit Against Actavis On Tuesday, Depomed Inc. (DEPO) announced that it won its patent lawsuit against Actavis (ACT), which wanted to market a generic version of Depomed’s shingles pain drug Gralise. Depomed’s shares surged more than 13% in after-hours trading to $14.94. Judge Joel Pisano of the U.S. District Court in New Jersey ruled that Actavis’s filing for FDA approval of generic Gralise infringes all seven of Depomed’s patents on the product. With this ruling, Depomed’s market exclusivity will be protected until 2024. Protecting Gralise has been a long, hard challenge for Depomed. The drug, which won FDA approval for the management of postshingles pain in January 2011, is a once-daily version of Neurontin (gabapentin), an off-patent Pfizer (PFE) product. Generics makers started challenging Depomed’s patents almost immediately. Depomed sued 6 companies that filed for FDA approval of generic Gralise, including Actavis, and by the spring of 2012 it had successfully fended off the other 5 copycats.