InSite Vision (OTC:INSV) eked out a narrow win against the University of California in San Francisco in a patent battle over eye treatment.
Alameda, Calif.-based InSite touted a split U.S. Court Federal Circuit Court of Appeals decision in its favor, upholding the U.S. Patent & Trademark Office’s panel ruling that the InSite is the true owner of a pair of patents pertaining to the AzaSite line of bacterial eye infection medication.
"We are glad that the U.S. Court of Appeals has upheld the earlier ruling by the USPTO and are hopeful that this will end this long legal contest," InSite CEO Tim Ruane said in prepared remarks. "InSite is making important progress in the late-stage clinical development of BromSite, AzaSite Plus and DexaSite, and we are focused on advancing these programs to the next stage."
UCSF in 2009 filed a lawsuit against InSite Vision, claiming that a former university employee had invented the pair of patents covering the AzaSite, AzaSite Xtra and AzaSite Plus treatments. The USPTO in November 2011 entered judgment against the university, and the appeals court affirmed that decision this month.
