Drug-patent appeal draws high court support

Several Supreme Court justices suggested that pharmaceutical companies should be allowed to use someone else's patented technology to conduct early-stage research into new medicines.

Hearing an appeal by German drug maker Merck KGaA, some justices questioned an appeals court decision that narrowed an exemption allowing researchers to use patented inventions in research ''reasonably related" to getting Food and Drug Administration approval for a new drug.

Justice Sandra Day O'Connor said companies need to conduct research into the safety and effectiveness of new medicines even before seeking FDA approval to test drugs on humans. ''I would think you would want to encourage the exemption to cover those matters," O'Connor said.

The appeal concerns a 1984 law that limits patent-infringement claims against drug companies and medical device makers. Companies including Pfizer Inc., Wyeth, and Eli Lilly & Co. said the exemption frees them to discover new life-saving medicines.