U.S. Court Invalidates Two Sanofi (France) Taxotere Patents

A U.S. court has ruled that two patents covering Sanofi's Taxotere cancer treatment are invalid, confirming a 2010 ruling that helped pave the launch of generic versions of the drug. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit on Monday upheld a lower court finding that the two patents were invalid and unenforceable because the invention was obvious and the French drugmaker obtained the patents improperly. Sanofi first sued generic drugmakers Hospira and Apotex Inc in 2008 for infringing the two patents.