Cross-Office Securities Litigation Team Secures Complete Dismissal for Impax Pharmaceuticals

A bicoastal securities litigation team secured a significant victory for Impax Pharmaceuticals (now Amneal Pharmaceuticals) and its senior officers in a shareholder class action before Judge Gilliam in the United States District Court for the Northern District of California.
 
Impax was a generic pharmaceuticals company, which merged with Amneal in an all-stock transaction that Latham handled in 2017. Plaintiffs claimed Impax and its competitors conspired to fix the price of key drugs digoxin and pyridostigmine, and that Impax’s statements regarding income and competitiveness were allegedly false or misleading because they did not disclose Impax’s price-fixing scheme. Plaintiffs also challenged Impax’s revenue guidance and certain statements regarding competitiveness in the market for two other products, diclofenac and budesonide. In September 2018, the court granted Latham’s motion to dismiss but gave plaintiffs leave to amend. Following oral arguments on May 2, 2019, the court granted Latham’s motion to dismiss the second amended complaint with prejudice.
 
“We’re delighted with the court’s ruling, which carefully assessed plaintiffs’ allegations in light of prevailing Ninth Circuit law, and found them wanting,” stated Peter Wald, the Latham & Watkins partner who led the defense for Impax Pharmaceuticals.

In addition to Peter Wald, partner Christopher Turner and associate Morgan Whitworth led the successful defense for Impax.