AbbVie’s Allergan and Evolus have been locked in a yearslong trade secrets fight involving the two drugmakers’ South Korean partners and blockbuster Botox. Despite some early promise for Evolus, a U.S. trade judge has flipped the script on the California drugmaker’s underdog Botox challenger.
And if that judge’s ruling holds up, Evolus and South Korea-based Daewoong’s Jeuveau, a rival to Botox, could be banned stateside for 10 years.
On Monday, Judge David Shaw with the International Trade Commission (USITC) preliminarily ruled in favor of AbbVie’s Allergan and its partner, South Korean drugmaker Medytox, that Jeuveau was developed using trade secrets stolen by a former Medytox employee, Bloomberg reported.
Shaw’s initial ruling is non-binding, and a full commission decision is scheduled for November.
Evolus blasted the ruling in a statement Monday, saying it planned to petition the judge’s decision on grounds that the commission overstepped its authority to only adjudicate domestic intellectual property disputes.
“The trade secrets asserted by Allergan and its Korean partner Medytox have never been used in the United States,” Evolus said. “Evolus will petition the full Commission to review this questionable legal maneuvering which would improperly increase the jurisdiction of the USITC beyond the Commission’s mandate.”
Evolus said it will continue its Jeuveau launch stateside pending a final ruling.
A spokesperson for AbbVie could not be reached for comment by press time.
RELATED: Whoops! Allergan’s bid to shield Botox manufacturing secrets from competitors backfires
