Supreme Court Grants Emergency Pause on Ruling Disallowing Novartis Pharmaceuticals’ Patent

Without the stay, Chinese drug maker HEC Pharm would be able to make generic versions of multiple-sclerosis drug

The company's logo is seen at the new cell and gene therapy factory of Swiss drugmaker Novartis in Stein, Switzerland, on Nov. 28, 2019. Arnd Wiegmann/Reuters

The Supreme Court has granted a temporary emergency stay of a lower court order that Novartis Pharmaceuticals says would allow the development of as many as 20 generic versions of its commercially successful multiple-sclerosis drug, Gilenya.

The emergency application in Novartis Pharmaceuticals Corp. v. HEC Pharm Co. Ltd., court file 22A272, was filed with the court on Sept. 28 and granted Sept. 29 by Chief Justice John Roberts.