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London’s Court of Appeal on Friday struck down a case filed by Pfizer (NYSE:PFE) and BioNTech (NASDAQ:BNTX), in a bid to reverse a prior High Court ruling that granted a patent win to their rival Moderna (NASDAQ:MRNA).
The makers of the Comirnaty COVID shot filed legal submissions last month to overturn the July 2024 ruling that determined one of Moderna’s (NASDAQ:MRNA) patents related to its Spikevax COVID-19 vaccine was valid.
At the time, Judge Richard Meade of London’s High Court found that Comirnaty had infringed Moderna’s (NASDAQ:MRNA) EP’949 patent, meaning Pfizer (NYSE:PFE) and BioNTech (NASDAQ:BNTX) were liable to pay damages to the Massachusetts-area biotech based on their vaccine sales after 2022.
However, the duo was permitted to appeal the ruling, which was upheld by Judge Richard Arnold of London’s Court of Appeal on Friday.
The ruling “does not change our unwavering stance that this patent is invalid,” Pfizer (NYSE:PFE) and BioNTech (NASDAQ:BNTX) said, adding that they plan to appeal, Reuters reported, quoting a joint statement from the company. “This decision has no immediate impact on Pfizer and BioNTech or Comirnaty.”
The case marks one of many COVID vaccine-related patent disputes the two parties are engaged in across multiple countries, including the U.S.