In Wellbutrin XL Antitrust Litigation, Eastern District of Pennsylvania Judge Mary A. McLaughlin denied a motion for reconsideration, filed by defendants GlaxoSmithKline PLC and Valeant Pharmaceuticals International, challenging the court’s earlier class certification ruling. In their suit, a class of indirect purchasers of depression medication Wellbutrin XL, and its generic equivalent, accused GlaxoSmithKline and Valeant of filing meritless litigation, and a baseless citizen petition with the FDA, to delay the entry of generic competitors for Wellbutrin XL into the American market.
In August, Judge McLaughlin certified the eligible class of indirect purchasers as all persons or entities in California, Florida, Nevada, Tennessee, New York, and Wisconsin, who bought an AB-rated generic equivalent of Wellbutrin XL at any time between Nov. 14, 2005, and April 29, 2011, along with everyone in the six states that purchased 150-milligram or 300-mg Wellbutrin XL before an AB-rated generic equivalent was available, and purchased generic XL in the same state after generic XL became available. This certification follows an earlier certification of a nationwide group of direct purchasers of the antidepressants.
In its ruling on defendants’ motion for reconsideration, the court held that although defendants made excellent points in their argument, the motion fell short of convincing the court to reverse its previous class certification ruling.