Deals & Corporate Governance
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March 15, 2024
'Cobra Venom' Painkiller Co. Inks Deal To Settle SEC Claims
A penny stock company that previously held itself out as a maker of cobra venom-infused pain drugs has agreed to resolve U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission fraud claims, according to court filings that note the company's two principals have also reached a settlement.
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March 15, 2024
Hospitals Say Constitutional Defenses Valid In FTC Merger Row
Two North Carolina hospital systems shot back at the Federal Trade Commission's contention that constitutional defenses are immaterial to the agency's challenge of a $320 million merger plan, arguing that case law shows that striking the positions would be premature.
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March 14, 2024
Clinicians May Continue Kickback Suit Vs. Mental Health Co.
A mental healthcare company can't dodge a suit claiming that it implemented a kickback scheme to pay its clinicians that led to unpaid wages, an Arizona federal judge ruled, saying the workers suing the organization supported their claims.
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March 14, 2024
PE-Backed Latin American Healthcare Firm Prices $420M IPO
Private equity-backed Latin American hospital operator Auna SA on Thursday set a price range on an estimated $420 million U.S. initial public offering, with plans to use the proceeds to repay debt and financing agreements.
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March 14, 2024
Drug Wholesalers Want Preliminary OK On $265M Sandoz Deal
A group of direct purchasers of generic drugs has asked a Pennsylvania federal court for approval of a $265 million settlement with Swiss drugmaker Sandoz over allegations of federal antitrust violations.
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March 13, 2024
TriZetto's $200M Jury Awards Thrown Out In Syntel Dispute
A New York federal judge on Wednesday vacated roughly $200 million in damages awards Cognizant affiliate TriZetto won in a trade secret misappropriation and copyright infringement suit against Syntel, ruling that the awards were improperly calculated.
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March 13, 2024
Hospital Operator Defends Releases In Ch. 11 Plan
California-based hospital operator Alecto Healthcare Services LLC asked a Delaware bankruptcy judge Wednesday to approve its small business Chapter 11 reorganization, saying it is not leaving money on the table by releasing potential clawback claims.
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March 13, 2024
Moderna's CLO Saw Growth In 2023 Compensation
Moderna Inc.'s top attorney earned about $4.3 million in total compensation last year, an increase compared to 2022 but a steep drop from the near $11.5 million she saw in 2021, according to a recent securities filing.
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March 12, 2024
Breast Implant Co.'s $90M DIP OK'd With Creditor Protections
Bankrupt breast implant maker Sientra Inc. received final court approval in Delaware bankruptcy court for its $90 million debtor-in-possession financing after adding in lien challenge protections for unsecured creditors.
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March 12, 2024
UnitedHealth Can't Get Early Win In Workers' ERISA Suit
A Minnesota federal court denied most of UnitedHealth Group Inc.'s bid for a pretrial win in a lawsuit alleging mismanagement of an employee 401(k) plan, finding Tuesday that allegations the company refused to ax underperforming funds to preserve a business relationship with Wells Fargo should go to trial.
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March 11, 2024
Acadia Investors Get Class Cert. In Suit Over Parkinson's Drug
A California federal judge on Monday certified a class of Acadia Pharmaceuticals investors in a lawsuit accusing the company of making false and misleading statements regarding the likelihood that its Parkinson's psychosis drug would also be approved for the broader use of dementia-related psychosis.
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March 11, 2024
Illumina Brass Faces Shareholder Suit Over Grail Deal Debacle
Current and former directors and executives of Illumina, including former U.S. Food and Drug Administration Commissioner Scott Gottlieb, have been hit with a shareholder derivative suit in California federal court over their role in the biotech company's failed $8 billion deal to reacquire its cancer-detection company Grail Inc.
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March 11, 2024
Judge OKs Eye Care Tech Co.'s $8M DIP Request
A Texas bankruptcy judge on Monday approved optometry software company Eye Care Leaders Portfolio Holdings LLC's request to draw on the remainder of its $8 million in debtor-in-possession funds for its Chapter 11 case, saying the company had given good reason to believe it was poised for a rewarding auction.
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March 11, 2024
Walmart Fails To Sink Feds' Opioid Crisis Lawsuit
A Delaware federal judge on Monday kept alive a government lawsuit accusing Walmart of fueling the nation's opioid crisis, ruling that the company could be held liable for filling illegitimate prescriptions its compliance officers allegedly failed to flag for unwitting pharmacists.
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March 08, 2024
Deadline Drama Briefly Threatens Suit Against Insurer VSP
A California federal judge threatened Thursday to toss Total Vision's antitrust claims accusing eye care insurance giant VSP of hamstringing it, in what appears to be a misreading of the schedule over missed deadlines that were actually pushed back, prompting the threat's retraction the next day.
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March 08, 2024
UK Enforcers To Appeal Nixed £100M Hydrocortisone Fine
Britain's competition enforcer is planning to appeal a tribunal's ruling that upended more than £100 million ($128.6 million) in fines against several drug companies for allegedly reaching agreements that increased the price of hydrocortisone tablets.
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March 08, 2024
Sorrento Gets OK For $2M Ch. 11 Funding Infusion, Asset Sale
A Texas bankruptcy judge on Friday approved drug developer Sorrento Therapeutics Inc.'s bid for an asset sale and $2 million in funds to fuel its Chapter 11 case, saying they represented the only option outside of a transition to Chapter 7.
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March 08, 2024
Pa. Court Grants Seizure Of Nursing Homes In 'Dire' Condition
A Pennsylvania federal court has granted an emergency request for a receiver to take control of six nursing homes in the state that Revere Tactical Opportunities REIT LLC claims were left in a "dire financial condition" by the properties' owners, who had also allegedly defaulted on a $30 million loan.
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March 07, 2024
Harpoon Shareholder Sues For Records On $680M Merck Buy
A shareholder of Harpoon Therapeutics Inc. sued in Delaware's Court of Chancery Thursday for corporate documents related to the company's proposed $680 million cash buyout by Merck, saying the proposed deal appears to unfairly "lock in a windfall for select Harpoon investors."
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March 07, 2024
Activist Caligan Sets Sights On Anika Therapeutics Again
New York-based activist investor Caligan Partners LP disclosed a nearly 10% stake in Anika Therapeutics and nominated two director candidates, a move that comes a year after the hedge fund urged the biotech company to consider "urgent changes" to its operations and structure.
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March 06, 2024
J&J Seeks Exit From Suit Over Stelara Exclusivity
Johnson & Johnson told a Virginia federal court Tuesday it shouldn't have to face a proposed class action claiming it has been trying to stifle competition in the market for the immunosuppressive drug Stelara, saying there was no "scheme" to enforce its patents as the suit alleges.
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March 06, 2024
FTC Can Depose Hospitals' Execs In Merger Challenge
A North Carolina federal magistrate judge has overruled two hospital systems' objections to the depositions of six Novant Health employees by the Federal Trade Commission in its antitrust action against a proposed $320 million merger, rejecting the healthcare providers' arguments that such depositions would be duplicative.
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March 06, 2024
Biopharmaceutical Biz Closes $259M Upsized Funding Round
South San Francisco, California-based clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company Alumis Inc. on Wednesday announced that it closed its upsized Series C funding round after securing $259 million from venture capital investors.
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March 06, 2024
Rite Aid Aims To Divest Most Of Its Health Dialog Business
Bankrupt drugstore chain Rite Aid Corp. said Wednesday that it will sell most of its Health Dialog business, which provides personalized health services, to Carenet Health for an undisclosed amount.
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March 05, 2024
FTC Chair Decries PE's Healthcare Impacts As Probe Starts
Federal Trade Commission Chair Lina Khan on Tuesday lamented what she deemed the "financialization" of healthcare resulting from private equity buyouts, in remarks coinciding with the launch of a multijurisdictional request for public comment on PE and other companies' growing control over the healthcare system.
Expert Analysis
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Caregiver Flexibility Is Crucial For Atty Engagement, Retention
As the battle for top talent continues post-pandemic, many firms are attempting to attract employees with progressive hybrid working environments — and supporting caregivers before, during and after an extended leave is a critically important way to retain top talent, says Manar Morales at The Diversity & Flexibility Alliance.
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No End In Sight For Pandemic Relief Fraud Enforcement
Congress' recent decision to extend the statute of limitations to 10 years for fraud related to pandemic relief means the era of enforcement actions brought under the False Claims Act and the Financial Institutions Reform, Recovery and Enforcement Act has only just begun, say attorneys at Crowell & Moring.
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Hot OSHA Summer: Regulatory Activity In Full Swing
Recent actions by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration — including changes to its injury and illness reporting rule, its proposal to allow nonemployee union reps to accompany OSHA inspectors, and a hazard alert on extreme heat — show that the agency's regulatory and enforcement regime remains vigorous, says Heather MacDougall at Morgan Lewis.
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Nursing Homes Must Prepare For Ownership Scrutiny
Due to the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services' designation of nursing home ownership changes as a high risk category, and increased transparency and notice obligations for changes in skilled nursing facility ownership set to take effect in Pennsylvania in October, owners should anticipate a heightened level of review and delays, say Mark Mattioli and Paula Sanders at Post & Schell.
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In-Office Engagement Is Essential To Associate Development
As law firms develop return-to-office policies that allow hybrid work arrangements, they should incorporate the specific types of in-person engagement likely to help associates develop attributes common among successful firm leaders, says Liisa Thomas at Sheppard Mullin.
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Trends Emerge In High Court's Criminal Law Decisions
In its 2022-2023 term, the U.S. Supreme Court issued nine merits decisions in criminal cases covering a wide range of issues, and while each decision is independently important, when viewed together, key trends and takeaways appear that will affect defendants moving forward, says Kenneth Notter at MoloLamken.
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A Judge's Pitch To Revive The Jury Trial
Ohio state Judge Pierre Bergeron explains how the decline of the jury trial threatens public confidence in the judiciary and even democracy as a whole, and he offers ideas to restore this sacred right.
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Negotiating AI-Life Sciences Partnerships To Minimize IP Risk
When life sciences companies and AI companies form partnerships to foster innovation, the parties should align interests as well as mitigate intellectual property risks by strategically identifying and addressing the unique AI-related legal issues, such as training data, AI model and output, say attorneys at Finnegan.
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How To Recognize And Recover From Lawyer Loneliness
Law can be one of the loneliest professions, but there are practical steps that attorneys and their managers can take to help themselves and their peers improve their emotional health, strengthen their social bonds and protect their performance, says psychologist and attorney Traci Cipriano.
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Litigation Funding Disclosure Should Be Mandatory
Despite the Appellate Rules Committee's recent deferral of the issue of requiring third-party litigation funding disclosure, such a mandate is necessary to ensure the even-handed administration of justice across all cases, says David Levitt at Hinshaw.
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Recalling USWNT's Legal PR Playbook Amid World Cup Bid
As the U.S. Women's National Soccer Team strives to take home another World Cup trophy, their 2022 pay equity settlement with the U.S. Soccer Federation serves as a good reminder that winning in the court of public opinion can be more powerful than a victory inside the courtroom, says Hector Valle at Vianovo.
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Revalidation Unlikely To End NIH Tech-Deal Bid Protest Saga
Recent U.S. Government Accountability Office decisions requiring the National Institutes of Health to again rework a $50 billion information technology contract probably won't result in an award for many protesters, and the corrective action will likely be followed by more protests, say James Tucker and Damien Specht at MoFo.
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Colorado Antitrust Reform Carries Broad State Impact
Colorado recently became the latest state to update and expand its antitrust laws, and the new act may significantly affect enforcement and private litigation, particularly when it comes to workers and consumers, says Diane Hazel at Foley & Lardner.