San Diego – September 8, 2023 – Cooley represented Moderna, a pharmaceutical and biotechnology company focusing on ribonucleic acid (RNA) therapeutics, on its patent infringement litigation suit brought by Alnylam Pharmaceuticals. Partners Chad Shear, Betsy Flanagan and Geoff Biegler are leading the Cooley team representing Moderna.
On March 17, 2022, Alnylam filed a suit in the US District Court for the District of Delaware against Moderna seeking compensation for patent infringement, alleging that Moderna's SPIKEVAX COVID-19 vaccine employed Alnylam's patented technology related to delivering RNA to cells. Alnylam initiated another suit in July 2022 for a second related patent infringement case, which was later consolidated with the first case.
On August 30, 2023, Chief Judge Colm F. Connolly issued a final judgment of noninfringement and dismissed Moderna's affirmative defenses and counterclaims without prejudice.
The case is Alnylam Pharmaceuticals, Inc. v. Moderna, Inc., et al. (1:22-cv-00335), and the patents in the suit are US patent numbers 11,382,979 and 11,246,933.
The victory earned the team a spot on The American Lawyer's Litigation Daily Litigator of the Week Runners-Up and Shout Outs list.