By Catherine Fredenburgh

Law360, New York (March 22, 2006, 12:00 AM ET) -- Hoisting up its white flag, Canadian drug maker Apotex Inc. has snatched up a settlement offered by French pharmaceutical giant Sanofi-Aventis and U.S. partner Bristol-Myers Squibb, potentially ending one battle in the epic war over blockbuster blood thinner Plavix.

Sanofi and Bristol-Myers revealed the news on Tuesday, noting that they had also approached Dr. Reddy’s Laboratories with a similar arrangement.

Co-marketed with Bristol-Myers Squibb, Plavix is Sanofi-Aventis's ground-breaking stroke medication.

Since 2002, Apotex and India-based Dr. Reddy’s have been seeking to strip Sanofi of the Plavix...