Appeals court backs Ortho-McNeil in Topamax fight

WASHINGTON, March 31 (Reuters) - A federal appeals court on Monday upheld a ruling that prevents generic drug maker Mylan (MYL.N: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) from pursuing efforts to market a version of the epilepsy drug Topamax until Ortho-McNeil Pharmaceutical Inc's patent expires.

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit found that a District Court in New Jersey district was correct in siding with Ortho-McNeil, a unit of Johnson & Johnson (JNJ.N: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz).

Ortho-McNeil said on its web site that the Topamax patent expires in September.

Under the Hatch-Waxman Act to encourage generic versions of drugs to be marketed quickly after a patent expires, Mylan had filed an application with the Food and Drug Administration saying it intended to bring out a version of Topamax. As part of that application, Mylan said Ortho-McNeil's patent was invalid.

But Ortho-McNeil disagreed, and filed a lawsuit saying its patent rights had been infringed. (Reporting by Diane Bartz; Editing by Tim Dobbyn)