Sun Pharmaceutical Industries Limited and certain of its subsidiaries have secured a significant legal victory in the United States after the US Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit affirmed a lower court ruling in the long-running antitrust litigation related to generic Lipitor (Atorvastatin).

The litigation stemmed from a 2008 patent settlement agreement between Sun Pharma and Pfizer concerning generic Lipitor. Plaintiffs had alleged that the settlement unlawfully delayed generic competition for the blockbuster cholesterol-lowering drug and claimed that, absent the agreement, generic Lipitor would have entered the US market earlier.

In its latest ruling, the US Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit affirmed the US District Court’s order granting summary judgment entirely in favour of Sun Pharma and its subsidiaries. The appellate court also upheld the District Court’s orders denying class certification to the plaintiffs.

Sun Pharma said the appellate decision represents a significant favourable development for the company and its subsidiaries and brings the litigation substantially to a close, subject to any further remedies that may be available to the plaintiffs under applicable law.

The ruling removes a long-standing legal uncertainty surrounding the Lipitor antitrust matter and marks an important development for Sun Pharma in the US litigation.