Intellectual Property Appellate Board (IPAB) has dismissed the application by pharma major Novartis to appoint a new technical member in place of former Patent Controller S Chandrasekhar to hear its appeal against the Patent Office’s denial of patent to its blockbuster blood cancer drug Glivec.
Novartis was of the view that Chandrasekhar, being the Patent Controller who denied the patent rights for Glivec, should not be on IPAB when an appeal against the decision is heard.
IPAB, in its hearing today, dismissed the Novartis plea. It is yet to give a date for hearing the original appeal.
Terming the development as disappointing, a Novartis spokesperson said the company is considering various options. "Today’s decision was a summary judgement and we will not know the panel’s reasoning until a full written judgement is issued. We will consider our options once we see the full text," she said.
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