Dutch court upholds Lipitor patent.

(From AFX Europe (Focus))

NEW YORK (AFX) - Pfizer Inc., the world's largest drugmaker, said Wednesday it won a court ruling in the Netherlands preventing Indian rival Ranbaxy Laboratories Ltd. from releasing a generic version of the company's cholesterol-reducing drug Lipitor.

The District Court of The Hague found that the basic patent covering atorvastatin -- the active ingredient in Lipitor -- would be infringed by a generic version of the treatment, Pfizer said in a statement. The decision, which is subject to appeal, prevents Ranbaxy from introducing a generic version of Lipitor before Pfizer's patent expires in November 2011.

"The court's …