The Supreme Court has issued stay order against the Madras High Court's earlier decision allowing hearing of Novartis Glivec patent appeal at the Intellectual Property Appellate Board (IPAB) by a two member Bench comprising a chairman and vice chairman, instead of the official three-member panel structure.

Acting on a petition filed by Hyderabad-based Natco Pharma Ltd, the apex court has stayed the Madras High Court order. The apex court has given four weeks time to the Indian government to respond on how the case could be heard without a technical member.

The Madras High Court on November 14, 2007 had agreed to the Government of India's proposal that the Glivec patent appeal by Novartis be heard at the Intellectual Property Appellate Board (IPAB) by a two member Bench comprising a chairman and vice chairman, instead of the official three-member panel structure. The High Court had ruled that the chairman could also act as a technical member of the Bench.

Novartis had petitioned the High Court for a new technical member because the Swiss drug major had disagreed with the appointment of the former Controller General of the Indian Patent Office S Chandrashehkaran to the IPAB.