Statements Describing "The Present Invention" Limit Claim Scope

AstraZeneca AB v. Hanmi USA Inc.

In a non-precedential decision addressing the weight given to a patentee's statements concerning "the present invention," the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit affirmed the district Court's construction, finding that a genus is limited to the specific species defined by the specification as "the present invention."  AstraZeneca AB v. Hanmi USA Inc., Case No. 13-1490 (Fed. Cir., Dec. 19, 2013) (Taranto, J.).

AstraZeneca brought suit against Hanmi, alleging a pharmaceutical drug Hanmi proposed to market in the U.S. infringed AstraZeneca's two patents-in-suit.  The patents-in-suit both relate to an omeprazole enantiomer drug used to treat acid reflux, which relates to AstraZeneca's pharmaceutical drug popularly known as Nexium®.  AstraZeneca's Nexium has an active ingredient of the magnesium (Mg2+) salt of esomeprazole.    In December 2010, Hanmi filed an application with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA)