By Christine Caulfield

Law360, New York (January 23, 2008, 12:00 AM ET) -- Generics drugmaker Barr Pharmaceuticals Inc. announced Tuesday it was in negotiations with a Johnson & Johnson unit to resolve a four-year patent dispute over blockbuster oral contraceptive pill Ortho Tri-Cyclen.

Barr said the New Jersey district court had adjourned the trial indefinitely while discussions to settle the litigation with Ortho-McNeil-Janssen Pharmaceuticals Inc. continued.

A settlement would resolve the claims of the J&J subsidiary that Barr was infringing on its patented technology when it sought regulatory approval to market a cheap version of the contraceptive.

“The general...