Principal Jon Singer named 2015 Life Sciences MVP by Law360

Fish & Richardson today announced that principal Jonathan E. Singer, head of the firm's Life Sciences Practice, has been named a 2015 "Life Sciences MVP" by Law360. According to Law360, Singer is among "those elite attorneys whose successes in high-stakes litigation, record-breaking deals and complex global matters earned them a spot on this year's list of MVP award winners." This was the second time in three years that Singer made Law360's elite list of Life Sciences MVPs. Singer was also an Appellate MVP in 2012.

Law360 called Singer "a go-to litigator for drug makers seeking to defend their brand-name prescription drugs from generic challengers" who "helped score a trio of patent victories" for long-time client Allergan Inc. In August 2015, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit affirmed a win that blocks Allergan's four competitors from selling a generic version of the LUMIGAN® 0.01% glaucoma treatment, which has $200 million in annual sales, until 2027.

According to Law360, "Singer helped Allergan score another Federal Circuit win in December 2014 when the appeals court shot down Sandoz's bid to modify an injunction on its generic version of Allergan eye drop product COMBIGAN®." This ruling maintained patent protection for the glaucoma drug, which has over $200 million in annual sales, until 2022.

Singer's third win for Allergan was in Texas U.S. District Court when the judge found that "Actavis PLC…jumped the gun by asserting Allergan's patents for its dry-eye medication RESTASIS® were invalid or unenforceable before its application for a generic version of the drug was accepted by the Food and Drug Administration," which is a violation of federal law.

Of course, Law360 notes that, "Singer isn't resting on his laurels. He's currently representing Gilead Sciences Inc. in three patent-infringement suits filed by brand-name competitors over its Hepatitis C drugs SOVALDI® and HARVONI®. Trials in all three cases are scheduled for 2016."