Enanta Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:ENTA) announced on Wednesday a lawsuit filed in the EU against Pfizer (NYSE:PFE) and some of its subsidiaries, alleging that the pharma giant’s COVID-19 pill Paxlovid violated its European patent rights.
The issue relates to the company’s European Patent No. EP 4 051 265, equivalent to its U.S. Patent No. 11,358,953, which is subject to another patent litigation between Pfizer (NYSE:PFE) and Enanta (NASDAQ:ENTA) in the U.S.
The suit filed in the Unified Patent Court of the European Union seeks a ruling over Pfizer’s (NYSE:PFE) alleged patent infringement in relation to the production, use, and sale of Paxlovid, a drug combo comprising a protease inhibitor called nirmatrelvir.
“The ‘265 Patent is based on Enanta’s July 2020 patent application describing coronavirus protease inhibitors invented by Enanta scientists,” the company said.
Watertown, Massachusetts-based Enanta’s (NASDAQ:ENTA) protease inhibitor glecaprevir is included in AbbVie’s (ABBV) hepatitis C therapy, Mavyret, through which the company generates royalties.
A hearing on the lawsuit is expected to begin within 12 months, and a decision on potential patent infringement could follow within weeks after that.