Eric W Dittmann

Partner, Litigation Department

New York

T 1(212) 318-6689

F 1(212) 230-7829

Eric W. Dittmann is Global Vice Chair of the Intellectual Property Practice, overseeing the firm’s 100-plus lawyer IP practice, and is based in the firm’s New York office. Mr. Dittmann focuses his practice on life sciences patent litigation and post-grant proceedings and has significant experience with a broad range of technologies in the pharmaceutical, biotechnology, and medical device fields. He has been recognized as a leading patent litigator by numerous publications, including The Legal 500, IAM Patent 1000, Benchmark Litigation, LMG Life Sciences, and Managing Intellectual Property.

Recent Representations

Successfully briefed and argued two IPR petitions resulting in rulings that method-of-treatment claims covering the drug product Humira® would have been obvious (currently on appeal).
Obtained a precedent-setting judgment of infringement and dismissal of all inequitable-conduct defenses in one of the largest-ever Hatch-Waxman cases relating to client Sunovion’s Lunesta® sleep medication.
Obtained walk-aways from six separate generics for Boehringer Ingelheim in Hatch-Waxman litigation involving its blockbuster Pradaxa® stroke medication.
Served as co-lead counsel for Boehringer Ingelheim in connection with largest-ever BPCIA litigation relating to its biosimilar version of Humira® (recently settled).
Served as Helsinn Healthcare's lead counsel in defeating two PGR petitions relating to Helsinn’s Aloxi® drug franchise.
Serving as lead counsel for Mitsubishi Tanabe Pharma Corporation in Hatch-Waxman litigation involving challenges to its first-in-class Invokana® diabetes medication.
Serving as lead counsel in confidential international arbitration concerning disputed royalty payments under an IP license.
Advising numerous companies regarding anticipated challenges to their small-molecule and biologic drug products.
Served as lead counsel for BioMarin Pharmaceutical in three appeals stemming from interference rulings relating to antisense oligonucleotides used to treat Duchenne muscular dystrophy, which ultimately resulted in a royalty-bearing settlement.
Served as lead counsel for DARA BioSciences and Helsinn Healthcare against claims that their Gelclair® oral mucositis treatment infringes a polymer-matrix patent, ultimately securing a favorable settlement.
Obtained a reversal of a judgment of patent invalidity concerning Boehringer Ingelheim’s Mirapex® drug product for treating Parkinson’s disease after our team was hired to handle the appeal.
Served as trial counsel for Pfizer (Wyeth) and Nycomed in a successful jury trial concerning a validity challenge to the patent covering the companies’ $2 billion-dollar-per-year Protonix® acid-reflux medication.

Accolades and Recognitions

Recognized in The Legal 500 as a “pharmaceuticals expert” that “has a great knowledge of both legal and scientific issues, and has a great ability to maintain full control over complex and diversified cases.”
Ranked as one of the world’s leading patent practitioners by IAM Patent 1000, noted for “performing at a championship level for Boehringer Ingelheim.”
Recognized as a Life Sciences Star by LMG Life Sciences.
Recognized as a Global IP Star by Managing Intellectual Property.
Named a Rising Star in Life Sciences by Law360 in 2015 for “securing several high-stakes and precedent-setting victories in intellectual property battles over blockbuster pharmaceuticals,” including the Lunesta® litigation.
Included in the inaugural edition of Benchmark Litigation’s Under 40 Hot List.
Received a 2019 Trailblazers award from New York Law Journal.
Two-time Legal Lion, Law360.

Professional and Community Involvement

Served as a judicial law clerk to the Honorable Alan D. Lourie of the United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit.
Member of the State Bars of New York and New Jersey and admitted to practice before the Federal Circuit, the District of New Jersey, the Southern and Eastern Districts of New York, and the United States Patent and Trademark Office.

Education

Seton Hall Law School, J.D., 2000 (summa cum laude, Associate Editor of the Seton Hall Law Review)
Rutgers University College of Engineering, B.S. in Mechanical Engineering, 1997 (with High Honors)

Rankings & Awards

Recognized by Managing IP as the Life Sciences IP Litigation Firm of the Year
Paul Hastings was was recognized by Managing IP at their Americas Awards, which honored individuals and companies behind the most innovative and challenging IP work of the past year, as well as those driving the international IP market. The firm was recognized as Life Sciences IP Litigation Firm of the Year in the United States.
April 05, 2019

Recognized as the 2019 Post-Grant Firm of the Year by IAM Magazine
Paul Hastings was recognized as the Post-Grant Firm of the Year at Intellectual Asset Management's inaugural Global IP Awards. The award recognizes the achievements of the firm's Patent Trial and Appeal Board (PTAB) Team, which practices before the US Patent & Trial Office. Over the past year, the team's accomplishments include numerous post-grant proceeding victories for technology and life sciences clients - four of which were affirmed by the Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit.
January 30, 2019

Recognized as LMG Life Sciences Stars for 2018
Paul Hastings was recognized in the 2018 edition of LMG Life Sciences, with Highly Recommended rankings for General Patent Litigation and Hatch-Waxman Branded Litigation. LMG Life Sciences selected seven individual lawyers as "Life Sciences Stars," including Eric Dittmann, Gary Giampetruzzi, Naveen Modi, Joseph O’Malley, Chad Peterman, Preston Ratliff, and Bruce Wexler. Earlier this year, LMG Life Sciences honored the firm with the LMG Life Sciences award for Hatch-Waxman Litigation Firm of the Year – Branded.
October 12, 2018

Recognized as the Hatch-Waxman Litigation Firm of the Year by LMG Life Sciences
LMG Life Sciences announced that the firm’s Intellectual Property practice was honored at the LMG Life Sciences Awards as the Hatch-Waxman Litigation Firm of the Year (Branded). The publication cited the firm for wins on behalf of Sunovion Pharmaceuticals, which locked in compound patent protection for Latuda®, the company’s billion-dollar-plus-per-year schizophrenia and bipolar drug, after a judgment of infringement that was affirmed by the Federal Circuit; and for Orexigen Therapeutics after a trial victory where the judge found all three patents-in-suit to be valid and infringed. The firm was also noted for obtaining an unprecedented six walk-away consent judgments in a major pharmaceutical litigation.

The firm and its partners were also shortlisted for:
* Inter-Partes Review Firm of the Year
* Post Grant Proceedings Attorney of the Year: Naveen Modi
* General Patent Litigator of the Year – New York: Bruce Wexler
September 13, 2018

Recognized as the Transatlantic IP Team of the Year by The American Lawyer
The American Lawyer named Paul Hastings its Transatlantic IP Team of the Year at the Transatlantic Legal Awards. The practice was honored due to Bruce Wexler, Eric Dittmann, and Isaac Ashkenazi leading a team in a major pharmaceutical litigation through fact, expert and Markman phases, and obtaining six walk-away consent judgments.
The awards consider the top legal work between the U.S. and the U.K. and European legal markets, recognizing law firms for “excellence in handling transatlantic matters across the key areas of corporate, finance, and disputes, as well as highlighting law firm innovation, commitment to pro bono, outstanding transatlantic strategy, and in-house leaders.”
June 15, 2018

Recognized as Law360 Practice Group of the Year in Life Sciences
Paul Hastings was named as a Practice Group of the Year in Life Sciences by Law360. The article noted Paul Hastings’ undefeated track record in life sciences cases at the Patent Trial and Appeal Board, including victories on behalf of Acorda Therapeutics, which won four inter partes reviews against Kyle Bass’ Coalition for Affordable Drugs. Law360 also highlighted the representation of Galena Biopharma in a civil-only settlement resolving investigations regarding Galena’s past promotional practices for Abstral, a rapid onset opioid product. The winners were chosen from nearly 750 submissions, and are recognized as "firms that racked up victories in litigation and closed the big deals to make their mark among clients and throughout the legal industry."
February 01, 2018

Recognized as LMG Life Sciences Stars for 2017
Paul Hastings was recognized in LMG Life Sciences, with Highly Recommended rankings for General Patent Litigation and Hatch-Waxman Branded Litigation. LMG Life Sciences selected seven individual lawyers as "Life Sciences Stars," including Joseph O’Malley, Bruce Wexler, Gerald Flattmann, Naveen Modi, Chad Peterman, Eric Dittmann, and Gary Giampetruzzi.
October 06, 2017

Recognized as LMG Life Sciences Stars for 2016
Paul Hastings was recognized in LMG Life Sciences, with Highly Recommended rankings for General Patent Litigation and Hatch-Waxman Branded Litigation. LMG Life Sciences selected six individual lawyers as "Life Sciences Stars," including Joseph O’Malley, Bruce Wexler, Gerald Flattmann, Gary Giampetruzzi, Naveen Modi, and Eric Dittmann.
November 30, 2016

Recognized at the 2016 LMG Life Sciences Awards
Paul Hastings was recognized with multiple LMG Life Sciences Awards. Bruce Wexler was named “General Patent Litigator of the Year – New York” and Naveen Modi was recognized as Post Grant Proceedings Attorney of the Year. The Life Sciences Patent Litigation practice also won awards for two Hatch-Waxman Impact Cases of the Year, including Helsinn Healthcare SA v. Teva Pharmaceuticals USA, a win resolving a long-running patent dispute over Aloxi®, a drug used to treat chemotherapy-induced nausea and vomiting. The Paul Hastings team representing Helsinn was led by Joseph O’Malley. The firm was also honored for its work on behalf of Eli Lily in Sanofi-Aventis US v. Eli Lilly & Co., where Bruce Wexler led the team representing Eli Lily in litigation regarding the marketing of Basaglar®, its insulin glargine drug product. The case was settled in late 2015, with the press reporting Eli Lilly’s ability to launch the drug.
September 16, 2016

Shortlisted for four LMG Life Sciences Awards for 2016
The Firm was shortlisted in four categories for the LMG Life Sciences Awards. Joseph O’Malley was nominated in the Hatch-Waxman Litigator of the Year – Branded category, Bruce Wexler was nominated in the General Patent Litigator of the Year - New Yorkcategory, Naveen Modi was nominated in the Post Grant Proceedings Attorney of the Year category, and the Firm was nominated in the “Hatch-Waxman Litigation Firm of the Year – Branded” category.
July 27, 2016

Recognized as a Law360 Rising Star in Life Sciences
Eric Dittmann was recognized by Law360 as a rising star in its annual list of top attorneys in Life Sciences.
March 30, 2015

Legal Media Group's 2013 LMG Life Science Awards
The firm was nominated as a 2013 LMG Life Science nominee in the “Litigation Team of the Year” and “(General) Patent Litigation: Firm of the Year” categories.
August 12, 2013

Intellectual Property Magazine
Intellectual Property Magazine recognized Paul Hastings' IP Pharmaceutical Team as the Pharmaceutical Team of the Year.
November 30, 2010

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Eric W Dittmann

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