Viatris’s Mylan unit filed a lawsuit in a Delaware federal court seeking to market a generic version of Novo Nordisk’s Wegovy. It asks the court to rule that its proposed semaglutide injection would not infringe Novo Nordisk’s patent rights.
Wegovy generates billions of dollars in revenue for Novo Nordisk. Patents covering the drug’s active ingredient are not expected to expire until at least 2032.
The lawsuit marks a significant step in Viatris’s effort to enter the lucrative market for GLP-1 weight-loss therapies. It could threaten a major source of Novo Nordisk’s future earnings.