Life Sciences

  • April 15, 2024

    Pharmacy, Courier Co. Settle Driver's Classification Suit

    A delivery driver and a CVS-owned pharmacy and a logistics and courier firm told an Illinois federal court that they have reached a settlement resolving claims that the company misclassified workers as independent contractors and paid them neither minimum nor overtime premium wages. 

  • April 15, 2024

    Justices Won't Nix FDA Labeling Preemption For State Claims

    The Supreme Court on Monday let stand lower court findings that the unique authority of the federal Food and Drug Administration preempted and, therefore, justified dismissing a proposed class action that alleged a Johnson & Johnson subsidiary broke Massachusetts law by misbranding Lactaid drug products as dietary supplements.

  • April 15, 2024

    Life Sciences Group Of The Year: Cooley

    Cooley LLP advised Horizon Therapeutics during its massive sale to Amgen Inc. — defeating an antitrust challenge along the way — and helped Moderna Inc. win a patent case centering on its COVID-19 vaccine, earning the firm a place among Law360's 2023 Life Sciences Groups of the Year.

  • April 12, 2024

    Moderna, Pfizer COVID Vax IP Suit Paused Amid PTAB Review

    A Massachusetts federal judge on Friday agreed to pause Moderna Inc.'s COVID-19 vaccine patent infringement suit against Pfizer Inc. and BioNTech until the Patent Trial and Appeal Board weighs in on a pair of patents, issuing a stay despite objections from Moderna.

  • April 12, 2024

    Ex-Biotech CEO Gets 7 Years In Fake COVID Test Case

    A former biotech CEO accused of defrauding investors by touting a phony rapid finger-prick COVID test was sentenced to seven years in prison in D.C. federal court Friday.

  • April 12, 2024

    DEA Unlawfully Pushing Psychedelics Ban, Researcher Says

    A psychedelic research company has asked a Washington federal judge to block the Drug Enforcement Administration from proceeding with its plan to ban two psychedelic substances, saying the agency's process for bringing the matter before an administrative judge has been unlawful.

  • April 12, 2024

    Abbott Labs Gets Price Claims Tossed In Baby Formula MDL

    An Illinois federal judge on Friday threw out a suit from parents alleging that Abbott Laboratories benefited from increased prices during a shortage of baby formula kicked off when one of its facilities was shut down, saying they haven't shown that the company's profits during that time were unjustly retained.

  • April 12, 2024

    Ex-Pfizer Worker's Pal Avoids Prison In Insider Trading Case

    An electrical engineer was sentenced to probation Friday for trading Pfizer Inc.'s stock using confidential tips about the efficacy of its COVID-19 drug, after a Manhattan federal court recognized his decision to voluntarily assist prosecutors with the trial conviction of his friend, a former Pfizer employee who leaked insider information.

  • April 12, 2024

    Trade Groups Urge Senators To Advance Patent Reform Bills

    Groups representing inventors, startups and medical technology companies are putting pressure on U.S. senators to pass bills that would prospectively limit the ability of courts to throw out patent lawsuits, a month after tech industry groups argued the legislation would trigger an onslaught of patent litigation.

  • April 12, 2024

    Woman Pleads Guilty To $1.3M COVID Tax Credit Fraud

    A California woman pled guilty to fraudulently obtaining $2 million in COVID-19 government loans and falsely claiming $1.3 million in tax credits, crimes that could result in a 20-year prison sentence, the U.S. Department of Justice said.

  • April 12, 2024

    Life Sciences Group Of The Year: Latham

    Latham & Watkins LLP marshaled its considerable depth and breadth of experience to score a major Federal Circuit victory and to shepherd biotechnology deals that reached into the 11 figures, earning the firm a nod as one of Law360's 2023 Life Sciences Groups of the Year.

  • April 12, 2024

    US-based MSD Broke Ban On Using 'Merck' In UK, Court Finds

    U.S.-based Merck Sharp & Dohme LLC's use of the "Merck" name on websites and social media breached the terms of a court order barring it from using the name in the U.K. to protect German drugmaker Merck KGaA's rights, a London court ruled Friday.

  • April 12, 2024

    Zoll Says 'Cookie-Cutter' Hack Claims Don't Show Harm

    Zoll Medical Corp. is asking a Boston federal judge to toss a proposed class action brought by medical device customers whose personal information was released during a ransomware attack last year and an earlier data breach in 2019, arguing the consumers weren't actually injured.

  • April 12, 2024

    EU Approves Biotech Co. Illumina's Plan To Divest Grail

    European Union antitrust authorities on Friday approved Illumina's plan to sell off Grail, the latest development in a saga that saw the biotech company reverse course and agree to offload the cancer-screening company after authorities claimed the reacquisition was completed "unlawfully."

  • April 12, 2024

    Asbury Park Escapes Pot Co.'s Zoning Board Conspiracy Suit

    A New Jersey federal court has dismissed a medical cannabis company's suit alleging Asbury Park and its zoning board conspired with a rival to block it from operating a treatment center, saying the complaint fails to support its allegations of the scheme.

  • April 11, 2024

    Sandoz Says Feds Misclassified Generics As 'Innovator Drugs'

    Pharmaceutical company Sandoz Inc. sued the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services in Washington, D.C., federal court on Wednesday, alleging the agency ignored the company's objection to classifying two of its generics as "innovator drugs," which could impact Sandoz's rebate obligations under Medicaid.

  • April 11, 2024

    Fed. Circ. Blocks Alvogen Generic Of Bausch Diarrhea Drug

    The Federal Circuit upheld a decision Thursday that prevents Alvogen from releasing a generic version of Bausch Health's blockbuster diarrhea and brain disease drug Xifaxan until 2029, rejecting Alvogen's bid to launch sooner because it was cleared of infringing some patents.

  • April 11, 2024

    FDA Commissioner Says Congress Must Act On Hemp, CBD

    The commissioner of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration said Thursday that the agency did not consider hemp-derived CBD safe enough to be sold lawfully as a dietary supplement, and urged Congress to create a new pathway to regulate the substance.

  • April 11, 2024

    9th Circ. Nixes 'Super Snap Removals' In Dexcom Suits

    The Ninth Circuit won't let Dexcom Inc. remove three suits alleging its glucose monitoring system is defective to federal court, saying its "super snap removal" motions were premature as they were filed before any of the cases actually commenced.

  • April 11, 2024

    Birth Control Injury Claims Barred From Conn., Court Told

    Connecticut state courts have no basis to exercise jurisdiction over three of the four companies targeted in product liability lawsuits brought by 103 women who claim their Filshie Clip birth control devices migrated within their bodies and caused injuries, counsel for the defendants told a Waterbury judge Thursday.

  • April 11, 2024

    Deals Rumor Mill: US Steel, Germany's Stada, Paramount

    The DOJ opens a probe into Nippon’s proposed $14.9 billion takeover of US Steel, German drugmaker Stada explores a sale, and Paramount and Skydance are hashing out potential deal terms. Here, Law360 breaks down these and other notable deal rumors from the past week.

  • April 11, 2024

    Del. Justices OK Denial Of Icahn-Illumina Midcase Appeal Bid

    Billionaire investor Carl Icahn may not put his Chancery Court litigation against biotechnology company Illumina Inc.'s board on hold for a review of a decision that struck portions of the complaint that were based on confidential information, Delaware's Supreme Court said Thursday, upholding the lower court's rejection of the midcase appeal.

  • April 11, 2024

    Medtronic Can't Ditch Ex-Sales Rep's Retaliation Claim

    Medical device maker Medtronic can't avoid a whistleblower retaliation claim by a former sales rep who says he was pushed out after reporting what he suspected to be a kickback scheme to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, a federal judge said Wednesday.

  • April 11, 2024

    Kirkland, Jones Day Build $787.5M Sale Of Steris' Dental Unit

    Medical device company Steris, advised by Jones Day, on Thursday announced plans to sell its dental segment to Kirkland & Ellis LLP-advised middle market private equity shop Peak Rock Capital for $787.5 million.

  • April 11, 2024

    Life Sciences Group Of The Year: Sullivan & Cromwell

    Sullivan & Cromwell LLP helped Bayer defeat Merck in litigation over asbestos-containing talc liability and guided mega pharma deals such as Pfizer's $43 billion acquisition of Seagen and Amgen's $27.8 billion acquisition of Horizon Therapeutics, earning the firm a spot among Law360's 2023 Life Sciences Groups of the Year.

Expert Analysis

  • FTC Orange Book Move Signals New Pharma Patent Scrutiny

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    The Federal Trade Commission's recent dispute against improper listing of drug patents in the U.S. Food and Drug Administration's Orange Book indicates heightened surveillance of the pharmaceutical industry, particularly where competition-related consequences of patent or regulatory processes are concerned, say attorneys at Fenwick.

  • AI Can Help Lawyers Overcome The Programming Barrier

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    Legal professionals without programming expertise can use generative artificial intelligence to harness the power of automation and other technology solutions to streamline their work, without the steep learning curve traditionally associated with coding, says George Zalepa at Greenberg Traurig.

  • How Legal Teams Can Prep For Life Sciences' Tech Revolution

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    The life sciences and health care industries are uniquely positioned to take advantage of new efficiencies created by cloud computing and generative artificial intelligence, but the sensitivity of their data also demands careful navigation of an expanding legislative and regulatory landscape, say Kristi Gedid, Zack Laplante and Lisa LaMotta at Ernst & Young.

  • Preparing Law Students For A New, AI-Assisted Legal World

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    As artificial intelligence rapidly transforms the legal landscape, law schools must integrate technology and curricula that address AI’s innate challenges — from ethics to data security — to help students stay ahead of the curve, say Daniel Garrie at Law & Forensics, Ryan Abbott at JAMS and Karen Silverman at Cantellus Group.

  • Series

    ESG Around The World: South Korea

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    Numerous ESG trends have materialized in South Korea in the past three years, with impacts ranging from greenwashing prevention and carbon neutrality measures to workplace harassment and board diversity initiatives, say Chang Wook Min and Hyun Chan Jung at Jipyong.

  • General Counsel Need Data Literacy To Keep Up With AI

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    With the rise of accessible and powerful generative artificial intelligence solutions, it is imperative for general counsel to understand the use and application of data for myriad important activities, from evaluating the e-discovery process to monitoring compliance analytics and more, says Colin Levy at Malbek.

  • Trending At The PTAB: Administrative Procedure

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    A pair of recent Federal Circuit rulings on Patent Trial and Appeal Board inter partes review shed light on applications of the Administrative Procedure Act, adding to an ever-growing body of case law showing the board's final written decision must be based on arguments clearly put forth by the parties, say Robert High and Benjamin Saidman at Finnegan.

  • Rite Aid's Reasons For Ch. 11 Go Beyond Opioid Suits

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    Despite opioid-related lawsuits being the perceived reason that pushed Rite Aid into bankruptcy, the company's recent Chapter 11 filing reveals its tenuous position in the pharmaceutical retail market, and only time will tell whether bankruptcy will right-size the company, says Daniel Gielchinsky at DGIM Law.

  • Navigating Discovery Of Generative AI Information

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    As generative artificial intelligence tools become increasingly ubiquitous, companies must make sure to preserve generative AI data when there is reasonable expectation of litigation, and to include transcripts in litigation hold notices, as they may be relevant to discovery requests, say Nick Peterson and Corey Hauser at Wiley.

  • FDA's Lab-Developed Test Rule May Bring Historic Challenges

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    If finalized, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration's proposed rule for regulating laboratory-developed tests will provoke some of the most interesting legal challenges that the agency has faced in decades, with outcomes that will likely reverberate across the agency's product centers, says Stacy Amin at MoFo.

  • Finding Focus: Strategies For Attorneys With ADHD

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    Given the prevalence of ADHD among attorneys, it is imperative that the legal community gain a better understanding of how ADHD affects well-being, and that resources and strategies exist for attorneys with this disability to manage their symptoms and achieve success, say Casey Dixon at Dixon Life Coaching and Krista Larson at Stinson.

  • A Look At DOJ's New Nationwide Investment Fraud Approach

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    Investment fraud charges are increasingly being brought in unlikely venues across the country, and the rationale behind the U.S. Department of Justice's approach could well be the heightened legal standards in connection with prosecuting investment fraud, says Jonathan Porter at Husch Blackwell.

  • Earnout Contract Considerations After NC Good Faith Ruling

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    The North Carolina Supreme Court's recent Value Health Solutions v. Pharmaceutical Research decision, holding the implied covenant of good faith and fair dealing did not apply in an earnout dispute related to an asset sale, demonstrates the need for practitioners to pay careful attention to milestone concepts in M&A transactions, says Benjamin Hicks at Wagner Hicks.

  • FDA's Off-Label Comms Guidance Is A Reluctant Step Forward

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    The U.S. Food and Drug Administration's latest draft guidance expands its safe harbor for health care providers that communicate information about their products' off-label uses, but does not fully resolve the First Amendment disconnect between federal courts and the agency's regulatory goals, say Jeffrey Shapiro and Lisa Dwyer at King & Spalding.

  • How Biden's AI Order Stacks Up Against Calif. And G7 Activity

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    Evaluating the federal AI executive order alongside the California AI executive order and the G7's Hiroshima AI Code of Conduct can offer a more robust picture of key risks and concerns companies should proactively work to mitigate as they build or integrate artificial intelligence tools into their products and services, say attorneys at Jenner & Block.

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