Drugmaker Dr. Reddy’s Laboratories and a wholly owned step down subsidiary in the U.S. have been named defendants in an anti-trust complaint related to cancer drug Revlimid in the U.S.
This is the third such complaint in five months in which the subsidiary Dr. Reddy’s Laboratories Inc. has been named a defendant.
The latest complaint, in the United States District Court for the District of New Jersey and made public on February 29, asserts claims under the federal antitrust law alleging that Dr. Reddy’s, acting in connection with Celgene Corporation, Bristol-Myers Squibb Co., Natco Pharma and Teva Pharmaceuticals USA, Inc., improperly restrained competition.
The companies maintained a shared monopoly in the sale of brand and generic Revlimid through their respective settlements of patent litigation, Dr. Reddy’s said in a filing on March 1 that triggered a fall in the drugmaker’s share prices before closing 3.47% lower at ₹6,197.40 on the BSE.
Walgreen Co., Kroger Specialty Pharmacy, Inc. and CVS Pharmacy, Inc. have filed the complaint, Dr. Reddy’s said.
The complaint against Dr. Reddy’s Laboratories Inc. and the parent company alleges that the challenged agreements improperly delayed generic entry entirely until 2022 and thereafter improperly limited generic competition through 2026. The complaint seeks damages for purported overpayments and equitable relief. This lawsuit has been consolidated by the court with several other lawsuits making similar allegations against Dr. Reddy’s and several other pharmaceutical companies, the drugmaker said.
Dr. Reddy’s said it believes that the allegations against it lack merit and will vigorously defend the litigation. In October and November 2023, the drugmaker had intimated the stock exchange about a complaint each, in the U.S., on the same lines in which the wholly owned step-down subsidiary has been named as a defendant.
Previously, in November 2022, Dr. Reddy’s Laboratories had said it along with a few other drugmakers were named defendants in a complaint filed in the U.S. under the Federal and State antitrust laws over Revlimid. A month later, Dr. Reddy’s said all claims against the company in the anti-trust litigation were dismissed.
