Eleventh Circuit Rejects the Strength of a Patent as a Criterion for the Legality of Reverse-Payment Settlements

Jodi Lucena-Pichardo, William Rooney, Jun 27, 2012

The Eleventh Circuit’s recent decision in Federal Trade Commission v. Watson Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (the “AndroGel” decision) addresses the latest challenge to reverse-payment settlements. The Eleventh Circuit rejected the Federal Trade Commission’s position that the lawfulness of a reverse-payment settlement depends on the perceived strength or weakness of the patent and concluded that a patent, unless previously invalid