Purdue Pharma spanked by judge for Oxycontin patent claim

As reported in USA Today and elsewhere, a federal judge ruled that Purdue Pharma patents protecting its bestselling painkiller Oxycontin are invalid. The court's opinion states that Purdue's patent application was deceptive and that its patents are unenforceable, clearing the way for drug maker Endo Pharmaceuticals Holdings to sell a generic version of the drug. This is the same judge who held in 2000 (require WestLaw subscription) that Purdue had not obtained its patents through inequitable conduct. It will be interesting to see (when yesterday's opinion becomes available) what changed between 2000 and 2004. Meanwhile, there's lots of interesting background in the N.Y. Times' story on this decision.