Novartis Ag & Anr. v. Natco Pharma Limited & Anr.

Delhi HC7 Jan 2025CS(COMM)/256/2021

Case brief

AI extract

What is this about?

Novartis AG v Natco Pharma Limited; CS(COMM) 256/2021; Delhi High Court; Justice Mini Pushkarna; settlement of patent infringement suit; Indian Patent No. 233161 (IN' 161); Eltrombopag Olamine; patent expiry 21.05.2023; permanent injunction infructuous; Order XXIII Rule 3 CPC; Section 151 CPC; Settlement Agreement 17.12.2024; confidential terms; refund of Full Court Fees; decree sheet; suit and pending application disposed 07.01.2025.

What did the court decide?

Suit disposed of in terms of the confidential Settlement Agreement dated 17th December 2024 and the recorded undertakings; certificate of refund of Full Court Fees directed to be issued in favour of the plaintiffs; decree sheet to be drawn up. ¶¶33

Novartis Ag & Anr. Vs Natco Pharma Limited & Anr. — Delhi HC (2025) — LawSathi Research

What the court decided

AI extract

Outcome

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Issue for consideration

Whether the joint application (I.A. No. 153/2025) under Order XXIII Rule 3 read with Section 151 CPC for recordal of settlement between the parties should be accepted and the suit disposed of in terms of the Settlement Agreement.

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Court's answer

During the pendency of the suit, the term of the suit patent IN' 161 expired on 21st May 2023.

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Ratio / Principle

Accordingly, the relief qua permanent injunction as prayed by the plaintiffs in paragraph 39(a) of the plaint became infructuous.

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Key takeaways

The parties arrived at an amicable settlement confirmed by way of a Settlement Agreement dated 17th December 2024, recording the terms thereof.ratio¶¶17
Undertaking recorded: the Plaintiffs forego their claims of damages, rendition for accounts of profits, delivery up etc. and any other claims made in prayer paragraph nos. 39 (b) to 39 (f).ratio¶¶21
Undertaking recorded: the Defendant foregoes its claims made in prayer paragraph nos. 114 (a) to 114 (d) of the written statement.

Detailed headnote1 paragraphs

Delhi High Court (Mini Pushkarna, J.), order dated 07.01.2025 in CS(COMM) 256/2021, NOVARTIS AG & ANR. v. NATCO PHARMA LIMITED: On a joint application under Order XXIII Rule 3 read with Section 151 CPC, the Court recorded the parties' settlement and disposed of this patent-infringement suit concerning Indian Patent No. 233161 (IN' 161) (Eltrombopag Olamine). The suit patent expired on 21.05.2023 during pendency, rendering the prayer for permanent injunction (paragraph 39(a) of the plaint) infructuous. Under the confidential Settlement Agreement dated 17.12.2024: (i) plaintiffs forego claims of damages, rendition for accounts of profits, delivery up etc. and other claims in prayer paragraph nos. 39(b) to 39(f); (ii) defendant foregoes its claims in prayer paragraph nos. 114(a) to 114(d) of the written statement; (iii) no party is entitled to any claims or damages; (iv) the Agreement constitutes full and final settlement of the suit, including claims arising from the manufacture, import, marketing, use, sale, supply or other exploitation of Eltrombopag Olamine products. Registry directed to issue certificate of refund of Full Court Fees; decree sheet to be drawn up; suit and pending application disposed of.

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$~1

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IN THE HIGH COURT OF DELHI AT NEW DELHI

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CS(COMM) 256/2021 & I.A. No. 153/2025

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NOVARTIS AG & ANR. .....Plaintiffs

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Through: Ms. Mamta Rani Jha with Mr. Siddhant Sharma and Ms. Garima Mehta, Advocates. (M): 9873137032 Email: [email protected]

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versus

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NATCO PHARMA LIMITED .....Defendant Through: Mr. J. Sai Deepak, Senior Advocate with Mr. Mohit Goel, Mr. Sidhant Goel, Mr. Aditya Goel, Mr. Deepankar Mishra, Mr. Kartikeya Tandon and Mr. Avinash K. Sharma, Advocates. (M): 9910160021

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CORAM:

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HON'BLE MS. JUSTICE MINI PUSHKARNA

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O R D E R % 07.01.2025

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I.A. No. 153/2025 (Joint application for recordal of settlement between the parties)

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The present is a joint application on behalf of the parties under Order XXIII Rule 3 read with Section 151 of the Code of Civil Procedure, 1908 (“CPC”) for recordal of settlement between the parties.

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The present suit has been filed for relief of permanent injunction restraining the defendant from infringement of plaintiff no. 1’s Indian Patent

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CS(COMM) 256/2021 Page 1 of 3

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This is a digitally signed order. The authenticity of the order can be re-verified from Delhi High Court Order Portal by scanning the QR code shown above. The Order is downloaded from the DHC Server on 23/01/2025 at 17:26:04

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No. 233161 (IN’ 161), rendition of accounts/damages, delivery up etc.

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During the pendency of the present suit, the term of the suit patent IN’ 161 expired on 21^st May, 2023, and accordingly, the relief qua permanent injunction as prayed by the plaintiffs in paragraph 39(a) of the plaint became infructuous. However, the parties have now arrived at an amicable settlement confirmed by way of a Settlement Agreement dated 17^th December, 2024, recording the terms thereof.

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Learned counsels appearing for the parties submit that the terms of the th Settlement Agreement are confidential in nature and are effective from 17 December, 2024.

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It is submitted that pursuant to the Settlement Agreement, the parties have agreed to settle their disputes before this Court and discharge each other from any and all claims, demands, costs/damages, cause of action arising from the present suit.

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In accordance with the terms of the Settlement Agreement, the parties have made certain undertakings, as given in Para 4 of the present application, which are reproduced as under:

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“a. The Plaintiffs hereby undertake to forego their claims of damages, rendition for accounts of profits, delivery up etc. and any other claims made In prayer paragraph nos. 39 (b) to 39 (f) of the Plaint;

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b. The Defendant hereby undertakes to forego its claims made in prayer paragraph nos. 114 (a) to 114 (d) of the written statement.

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c. No Party shall be entitled to any claims or damages.

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d. The Parties agree that the Settlement Agreement constitutes full and final settlement of the present suit as well as full and final settlement of any claim or allegation by the Plaintiffs arising out of the manufacture, import, marketing, use, sale, supply or other exploitation of Eltrombopag Olamine products by the Defendant”

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Both the parties are bound by the Settlement Agreement between

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CS(COMM) 256/2021 Page 2 of 3

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them and the undertaking as recorded herein.

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Learned counsels appearing for the parties affirm and acknowledge that they have read all the terms and had entered into the settlement voluntarily.

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In view of the fact that the parties have arrived at a settlement, the Registry of this Court is directed to issue a certificate of refund of Full Court Fees in favour of the plaintiffs.

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Considering the submissions made before this Court, the present suit is disposed in terms of the Settlement Agreement dated 17^th December, 2024, terms of which are confidential and in terms of the undertaking, as reproduced hereinabove.

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Decree sheet be drawn up.

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The suit, along with the pending application, stands disposed of.

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MINI PUSHKARNA, J

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JANUARY 7, 2025 c

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CS(COMM) 256/2021 Page 3 of 3

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This is a digitally signed order.

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The authenticity of the order can be re-verified from Delhi High Court Order Portal by scanning the QR code shown above. The Order is downloaded from the DHC Server on 23/01/2025 at 17:26:04

Novartis Ag & Anr. v. Natco Pharma Limited & Anr.

Case brief

What is this about?

What did the court decide?

Novartis Ag & Anr. v. Natco Pharma Limited & Anr.

Case brief

What is this about?

What did the court decide?

Why is it important?

What the court decided

Issues for consideration

Statutes considered

Procedural history

Parties & counsel

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Case details

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