By Jan Wolfe
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Teva Pharmaceutical Industries (NYSE:TEVA) Ltd on Tuesday won a ruling from a U.S. administrative court that could help it fend off competition from Eli Lilly (NYSE:LLY) and Co in the market for migraine drugs.
The Patent Trial and Appeal Board upheld the validity of three Teva patents on its migraine treatment Ajovy, rejecting arguments by Eli Lilly that they were invalid.
In a separate legal action filed in 2018, Teva accused Eli Lilly's competing drug Emgality of infringing the same patents. Eli Lilly could be liable for money damages if it loses that case.
Eli Lilly responded to the lawsuit by asking the Board, a court run by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, to separately reconsider whether the patents should have been granted in the first place.
Teva's stock price jumped about 9% after the patent court issued its decision, which Eli Lilly can still appeal.
A Teva spokeswoman said the company was pleased with the outcome and called the ruling a "testament to the strength of Teva's intellectual property."
An Eli Lilly spokesman did not immediately respond to a request for comment.