Barr Antitrust Case to Continue

A federal district court judge has ruled that three antitrust cases against Barr Pharmaceuticals filed by direct purchasers cannot be decided on summary judgment.

Meijer, Walgreen and CVS Pharmacy filed the suit in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia claiming that Barr and Warner Chilcott made an illegal agreement to delay the introduction of generic Ovcon (ethinyl estradiol/norethindrone) in 2004.

The companies also sued Warner Chilcott in the same court. However, the judge in the case approved a settlement, leaving Barr as the sole defendant.

According to the agreement in question, Barr would not sell its product for five years and would be obligated to supply Warner Chilcott with the drug for the same period. Barr maintained that the agreement favored competition and consumers, including a safe, stable and reliable supply of a product that could continue to compete aggressively against other hormone contraceptives in the marketplace.

In assessing the parties’ arguments, the court had to determine the economic effects in the relevant market.

The court ruled the agreement between Barr and Warner Chilcott cannot be condemned as per se unlawful restraint of trade. Furthermore, it could not resolve the definition of the disputed market on summary judgment. A status hearing in the case will be held Sept. 17.