The U.S. International Trade Commission (ITC) has agreed to review a ruling by an administrative law judge that Jubilant DraxImage did not violate unfair competition with the exportation of its rubidium elution systems into the U.S., as alleged in a complaint from contrast developer Bracco Diagnostics.
Bracco filed a lawsuit against Jubilant DraxImage in March 2018, alleging that the Canadian radiopharmaceutical firm infringed on patents regarding rubidium-based radiopharmaceuticals for cardiac PET studies and committed unfair competition by exporting and marketing its rubidium elution systems in the U.S. At that time, Bracco asked the ITC to stop Jubilant from exporting its Ruby-Fill rubidium-82 generators and related products and components.
This past February, an administrative law judge issued an initial determination with different decisions in the case. One ruling stated that Jubilant's Ruby rubidium elution system version 3.0 "directly infringes the asserted patents." At the same time, the judge also ruled that Jubilant DraxImage's Ruby rubidium elution system version 3.1 and version 4 did "not directly infringe the asserted patents" and "declined to reach [an] indirect infringement on summary determination," according to a September 30 document.
At a subsequent evidentiary hearing in August, the judge issued a final initial determination in which he found no violation by Jubilant DraxImage of unfair competitive practices and no unfair acts involving the exportation and sale of its generators in the U.S. It is this ruling that the ITC will review, in accordance with section 337 of the Tariff Act of 1930.
The ITC will not review other rulings within the final initial determination.
