Defendant
1 case as defendant.
I'll research this company before writing the profile.
Ares Trading SA is a Swiss corporation at Rue de l'Ouriette 151, Zone Industrielle de l'Ourettaz, 1170 Aubonne (Vaud), Switzerland. It is registered in the Swiss commercial register (CHE-103.935.488), entered in 1987 and relocated from Neuchâtel to Aubonne in 2004, with share capital of CHF 500,000. It is a wholly owned subsidiary of Merck KGaA (Frankfurt-listed, DAX), operating inside the group's healthcare/Serono (EMD Serono) business. No standalone headcount or revenue is published for the entity; parent Merck KGaA reports roughly €21 billion in annual group sales.
Ares Trading is an operating company and IP-holding vehicle, not an NPE. Its registered purpose covers research, development, manufacture, import/export, storage and commercialization of biological/pharmaceutical products, plus acquisition and administration of patents, trademarks and licenses, and intra-group financing. Swissmedic lists it as the registered manufacturer of the Aluetta pen injector. It also appears in SEC filings as record holder of life-science equity stakes (e.g., Precigen shares and a convertible note) and as a counterparty to drug licensing/research collaborations.
Its litigation posture is that of an Orange Book patent owner enforcing against generic filers. Four of five tracked appearances are as plaintiff in District of Delaware Hatch-Waxman (ANDA) suits, joined with Merck KGaA and Merck Serono SA. Its sole defendant-side appearance is a PTAB inter partes review — IPR2023-00482, Hopewell Pharma Ventures, Inc. v. Ares Trading SA (filed February 2023), challenging U.S. Patent 10,849,919, which Ares Trading owns. Venue is D. Del., not a plaintiff-friendly Texas district.
The plaintiff cases all concern cladribine (MAVENCLAD): Merck KGaA et al. v. Accord Healthcare (D. Del., July 2022; later consolidated), plus suits against Aurobindo, Apotex, and Hopewell Pharma Ventures over the '947, '903 and '919 patents. The '947 and '903 patents were invalidated at the PTAB (IPR2023-00480/481), a result affirmed by the Federal Circuit in October 2025; the separate '919 challenge was terminated after settlement.
PTAB IPR petition challenging claims 1–6, 8–9, 11–12, 14–16, 18–20, 23–27, 30, and 33–34 of US 10,849,919. Terminated-settled before a final written decision.