Novartis Indian Supreme Court hearings again re-scheduled

Humanitarian aid agency Medecins Sans Frontieres said on Friday it has learnt that final arguments in the Indian Supreme Court case of Swiss drug major Novartis (NOVN: VX) versus the government of India has been re-scheduled for August 22, 2012. The case was due to start on July 10.

The postponement is due to a request from lawyers representing Novartis that the hearings be adjourned because of the unavailability of their main counsel arguing the case.

Novartis’ long-running case against the Indian government centers around the country's patent law, notably Section 3(d), which states that a modification of a known chemical composition is non-patentable. Specifically, Novartis' legal action stems from an attempt to obtain an Indian patent on Gleevec/Glivec (imatinib mesylate), its drug for chronic myeloid leukemia and other cancers, which was denied by India's Patent Office in 2006.