(September 15, 2016, 3:24 PM EDT) -- WASHINGTON, D.C. — Following an appellate court’s decision that four patents covering the pain-relieving drug OxyContin are invalid, a painkiller manufacturer in a Sept. 1 petition for writ of certiorari asks the U.S. Supreme Court to consider whether an inventor’s discovery is relevant to the obviousness inquiry (Purdue Pharma LP, et al. v. Epic Pharma LLC, et al., No. 16-289, U.S. Sup.).

(Petition for writ of certiorari available. Document #78-160919-004B.)

The Federal Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals on Feb. 1 affirmed that a New York federal...