On July 16, 2008, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit dismissed as moot an appeal by Apotex from a ruling that the courts lacked jurisdiction over a patent dispute. WLF had filed a brief urging that the district court’s dismissal be affirmed. However, the appeals court said that there was no point in issuing a decision on Apotex’s invalidity claim because events had rendered the case moot. The court explained that all patent exclusivity periods were set to expire in August 2008, after which Apotex will be free to begin marketing its generic version of Merck’s drug, a right that would be unaffected by any court ruling on Apotex’s underlying claims. WLF’s brief argued that the courts lacked jurisdiction to hear Apotex’s claims because it could establish neither: (1) a reasonable apprehension that it would be sued for violating Merck’s patent; or (2) that it was forgoing activity that it would have undertaken but for the likelihood of a patent infringement suit by Merck