U.S. Supreme Court To Rule On "Pay-for-Delay" Antitrust Issue

The Supreme Court of the United States has granted the government's petition for a writ of certiorari in FTC v. Watson Pharmaceuticals, agreeing for the first time to address the antitrust and patent law implications of so-called "pay-for-delay" or "reverse payment" patent settlement agreements between branded and generic pharmaceutical manufacturers.  The Court's ruling will likely resolve this contentious issue, which has divided the federal courts and which the Federal Trade Commission has pursued for more than a decade.

The Supreme Court of the United States has agreed for the first time to hear a case involving the contentious "pay-for-delay" antitrust theory applied to certain patent settlement agreements between branded pharmaceutical companies and generic drug applicants.