Usa, Umpteenth Lawsuit between Ciba Vision and Bausch & Lomb for Pure Vision Lens Patent

The umpteenth chapter of the lawsuit between the two largest producers of contact lenses: a few days ago, Ciba Vision accused Bausch & Lomb of contravening the federal court's ruling which prohibited the production and sale of Pure Vision contact lenses in the United States.

In April, the Delaware district court authorized Ciba Vision to investigate and question the directors of B&L to prove any violation of the ruling. If reliable proof is presented, the court could open a new hearing and impose the payment of damages.
But the Rochester-based company repeatedly denies the charge: 'We are convinced that we have fully collaborated with the court's injunction' said Bausch & Lomb spokesperson, Margaret Graham.

The controversy dates back to last February when the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit upheld a previous sentence which prohibited the sale and commercialization of Pure Vision lenses : a judge did in fact consider that a similar patent deposited by Wesley Jessen (a subsidiary of Ciba Vision Inc.) was valid and inviolable.
Bausch & Lomb launched Pure Vision, the lens that can be worn for thirty days without ever being removed, in March '99, after ten years and 60 million dollars of investment in research. Initially sold for 7 day continuous use, in November 2000 the lens obtained FDA approval for continuous use of 30 days.
After the first negative ruling, most of the lens production was transferred from Rochester to Wateford in Ireland. Robert Stiles, the Rochester company's senior vice president and general counsel, has said repeatedly that he is convinced that "the product does not violate the Ciba Vision patent. Pure Vision lenses are the result of years of research and development exclusively by the company's scientists".

For the same reason, the two companies also have lawsuits underway in Ireland, Australia and Germany.

(Source: Democrate and Chronicle)