Bristol-Myers Partner Otsuka Wins Abilify Ruling

Bristol-Myers Squibb Co. partner Otsuka Pharmaceutical Co. won a court ruling that will prevent generic versions of the schizophrenia treatment Abilify from entering the U.S. market until April 2015.

U.S. District Judge Mary L. Cooper in Trenton, New Jersey, upheld a patent that covers aripiprazole, the key ingredient in the drug. Tokyo-based Otsuka discovered the drug and co-markets it with New York-based Bristol-Myers in the U.S. and Europe.