Palo Alto – August 26, 2014 – Cooley LLP announced today that it scored a significant victory for client Gilead Sciences in an arbitration initiated by Hoffmann-La Roche (Roche) over rights to Gilead's blockbuster hepatitis C drug, Sovaldi (sofosbuvir).
Following a two-week arbitration hearing, a panel of three arbitrators issued its award on August 15, 2014, ruling in favor of Gilead and finding that Roche failed to establish any of its claims. As a result, Roche is not entitled to any damages or other relief. The opinion remains confidential at this time.
Sovaldi is a revolutionary new therapy for individuals infected with the hepatitis C virus. It was approved by the FDA as a breakthrough drug in December 2013. The drug cures more than 90 percent of patients with the most common form of hepatitis C, and it enables patients to avoid the need for more costly treatments, such as liver transplants. Thus far, Sovaldi has been one of the most successful drug launches of all time, with sales reaching $5.75 billion through the first six months of 2014.
The core team representing Gilead was comprised of Cooley's chairman, Steve Neal, fellow partners Marty Schenker, Michelle Rhyu and Jeffrey Karr, and associates Scott Sukenick, Susan Krumplitsch, Daniel Knauss, Angela Purcell, Jeff Walker, Jennifer Lerner, Lauren Pomeroy and David Houska.
Steve Neal was recently recognized in The American Lawyer's "Litigator of the Week" series for spearheading the win.
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