2023-04-11 14:35:18 ET
On Tuesday, a U.S. appeals court sided with Moderna ( NASDAQ: MRNA ) in a years-long patent dispute between the biotech and Arbutus ( NASDAQ: ABUS ) over messenger-RNA-based COVID vaccine technology.
A three-judge panel at the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit upheld a ruling by the Patent Trial and Appeal Board (PTAB) of the Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) issued its decision following a five-year-long patent battle.
The dispute dates back to 2018 when Moderna ( MRNA ) petitioned to invalidate patent 9,404,127, a component of Arbutus’ ( ABUS ) IP portfolio covering the lipid nanoparticle (LNP) technology.
In 2019, PTAB invalidated all claims related to the ‘127 Patent, a decision the appeals court upheld on Tuesday, noting that the board rightfully made its decision based on an earlier Arbutus’ ( ABUS ) Patent that disclosed the same invention.
The ruling will not impact an ongoing lawsuit filed by Arbutus ( ABUS ) and Genevant Sciences, a venture between the company and Roivant Sciences ( ROIV ) against Moderna ( MRNA ) over several patents related to the production and sale of COVID shot.
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Moderna wins appeal court ruling in Arbutus COVID vaccine patent dispute