An amended claim was filed on Monday in the case brought by Ravgen Inc. against Quest Diagnostics Inc. and Quest Diagnostics Nichols Institute. The case was originally filed on September 22, 2020. The case is regarding alleged patent infringement regarding prenatal testing methodology and products.
Prenatal diagnostic testing allows parents to know the health of the fetus and allows for decision making regarding medical procedures and treatments. However, the use of fetal blood or tissue can be damaging to the health of the fetus. Ravgen is the holder of a patent regarding collection of “cell-free” fetal DNA, or fetal DNA that is part of the maternal bloodstream and whose collection does not endanger the fetus, including a method for preventing lysis or destruction of cells in the collected blood in order to harvest the . The plaintiff alleges that Quest’s QNatal product directly infringes on this collection method, but has not sought licensing for the infringed patents.
The plaintiff seeks declaratory judgment as well as compulsory licensing, as the plaintiff does recognize the value of the method as well as the necessity of providing access to the less invasive method. Plaintiff is represented by Sergenian Law and Desmarais LLP. Quest is represented by Wilmer Cutler Pickering Hale and Dorr, Lewis Brisbois Bisgaard & Smith, and Epstein Becker & Green.
