Payments to delay generic drugs
Federal Trade Commission v. Actavis
In brief
The Court overturned the ruling that kept the FTC’s lawsuit thrown out and sent it back, but did not decide whether the settlements were unlawful.
- Where it stands
- Decided
Decided 5-3 · June 17, 2013 · Opinion by Justice Breyer
- What it’s about
- The FTC alleged that Solvay Pharmaceuticals’ payments to generic drug makers in patent settlements violated antitrust law.
- Who it affects
- The FTC can pursue its competition-law case against Solvay and the generic drug makers, but the Supreme Court did not decide whether the settlements violated that law.
Summary: written with AI from the case record.
What it's about
The Supreme Court overturned the Eleventh Circuit’s decision upholding dismissal of the FTC’s complaint and sent the case back to the lower court (remanded), without deciding whether the settlements were unlawful.
Roberts’s dissent (an opinion by justices who disagreed) said Solvay paid two generic makers millions and let them enter the market five years before its patent expired; they agreed to provide marketing and manufacturing help and honor the patent.
The dispute arose from a patent settlement between Solvay and generic drug makers.
Question presented
Are reverse payment agreements per se lawful, rather than presumptively anticompetitive?
What the Court decided
Holding
The Eleventh Circuit erred in affirming the dismissal of the FTC’s complaint. 677 F. 3d 1298, reversed and remanded.
- Result
- Reversed
The vote
From the opinions
“The Court, however, departs from this approach, and would instead use antitrust law’s amorphous rule of reason to inquire into the anticompetitive effects of such settlements.”
What's next
The Eleventh Circuit must take up the FTC’s complaint again; whether the settlements violated competition law remains unresolved.
Documents
Opinions
Audio
Docket activity
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AI analysis generated: Impact Analysis
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Audio Recording added: Oral Arguments - Federal Trade Commission v. Actavis, Inc.
Opinion added: Opinion
More questions
- What did Roberts say courts should examine?
- He said courts should ask whether the settlement gave Solvay more control over the market than its patent allowed.
Sources
Primary materials plus reporting. Best-effort analysis: this explainer relies on a mix of primary materials and trusted secondary sources. Official filings and opinions remain authoritative.