life sciences companies

As readers of this blog well know, life sciences companies are frequent targets of securities class action lawsuits. Interestingly, at least according to the latest annual report from the Sidley law firm, in recent years the number of lawsuits filed against life sciences companies has declined, although the lawsuit frequency against life sciences companies still remains elevated by comparison to the frequency of litigation against the universe of public companies. Perhaps even more importantly, motions to dismiss in securities lawsuits filed against life sciences companies are granted more than half of the time. A copy of the law firm’s April 2024 memo, entitled “Securities Class Actions in the Life Sciences Sector: 2023 Annual Survey,” can be found here. A two-page summary of the report can be found here.Continue Reading A Detailed Look at the 2023 Securities Litigation Against Life Sciences Companies

The number of securities class action lawsuits filed against life sciences companies in 2023 remained steady compared to 2022, as suits against life sciences companies represented almost one in five of the securities class action lawsuits filed during the year, according to a new report from the Dechert law firm. The report, entitled “Dechert Survey: Developments in Securities Fraud Class Actions Against U.S. Life Sciences Companies: 2023 Edition,” states that there were a total of 43 securities suits filed against life sciences companies in 2023, the same number as were filed in 2022. The Dechert law firm’s March 27, 2024 press release, which links to the full report,  can be found here.Continue Reading Life Sciences Companies Remained Frequent Securities Suit Targets in 2023

In the latest edition of its annual report, the Sidley Austin law firm takes a detailed look at important securities litigation developments in 2022 relating to life sciences companies. The report includes not only a review of life sciences companies’ securities litigation class action filings trends but also examines life sciences companies’ track record in the courts, both with respect to motions to dismiss in the district courts and on appeal. The law firm’s report, entitled “Securities Class Actions in the Life Sciences Sector: 2022 Annual Survey” can be found here. A May 17, 2023 blog post summarizing the report can be found here.Continue Reading A Detailed Look at the 2022 Securities Litigation Against Life Sciences Companies

The number of securities class action lawsuits filed against life sciences companies in 2022 declined compared to 2021 but remained relatively steady as a proportion of the total number of securities class action lawsuits filed during the year, according to a new report from the Dechert law firm. The report, entitled “Dechert Survey 2022 Edition: Developments in Securities Fraud Class Actions Against U.S. Life Sciences Companies,” states that there were a total of 43 securities suits filed against life sciences companies in 2022, compared to 59 in 2021. The Dechert law firm’s February 23, 2023 press release about the report, which links to the full report,  can be found here.Continue Reading Life Sciences Companies Remained Frequent Securities Suit Targets in 2022

In the latest edition of its annual report, the Sidley Austin law firm takes a detailed look at important securities litigation developments in 2021 relating to life sciences companies. The report includes not only a review of life sciences companies’ securities litigation class action filings trends but also examines life sciences companies’ track record in the courts, both with respect to motions to dismiss in the district courts and on appeal. The law firm’s report, entitled “Securities Class Actions in the Life Sciences Sector: 2021 Annual Survey” can be found here. The same site also includes a link to a short summary of the report.
Continue Reading A Detailed Look at the 2021 Securities Litigation Against Life Sciences Companies

The number of securities class action lawsuits filed against life sciences companies in 2021 declined overall relative to 2020 but remained steady as a proportion of the total number of securities class action lawsuits filed during the year, according to a new report from the Dechert law firm. The report, entitled “Dechert Survey: Developments in Securities Fraud Class Actions Against U.S. Life Sciences Companies: 2021 Edition,” states that there were a total of 59 securities suits filed against life sciences companies in 2021, compared to 80 in 2022. The Dechert law firm’s March 28, 2022 press release about the report, which links to the full report,  can be found here.
Continue Reading Life Sciences Companies Remained Frequent Securities Litigation Targets in 2021

In the latest edition of the law firm’s annual report, Sidley Austin takes a detailed look at important securities litigation developments in 2020 relating to life sciences companies. The report includes not only a review of life sciences companies’ securities litigation class action filings trends but also examines life sciences companies’ track record in the courts, on motions to dismiss in the district courts and on appeal. The law firm’s report, entitled “Securities Class Actions in the Life Sciences Sector: 2020 Annual Survey” can be found here. The law firm’s two-page report summary can be found here.
Continue Reading A Detailed Look at 2020 Securities Litigation Against Life Sciences Companies

Federal court securities class action litigation filings against life sciences companies declined slightly in 2020 relative to 2019 but remained above long-term historical levels, and remained a significant portion of overall securities class action lawsuit filings during the year, according to a new report from the Dechert law firm. The January 28, 2021 report, entitled “Dechert Survey: Developments in Securities Fraud Class Actions Against Life Sciences Companies 2020 Edition,” can be found here.
Continue Reading Securities Litigation Against Life Sciences Companies Remained Elevated in 2020

As I have documented in prior posts (for example, here), publicly traded life sciences companies are frequent targets of securities class action lawsuits. But life sciences companies’ securities litigation exposure may be well-known, it is not always as appreciated that the securities suits against life sciences companies are often dismissed. Two recent rulings in securities suits against life sciences companies – Antares Pharma and Nabriva Therapeutics – provide recent examples of securities suits in which the courts have granted the companies’ dismissal motions. The rulings illustrate the extent to which life sciences companies often are able to successfully defend themselves against securities suits.
Continue Reading Life Sciences Companies: Frequent Securities Suits Frequently Dismissed

As I noted in my recent analysis of the 2019 securities class action litigation filings, one of the significant factors driving the near-historical levels of securities suit filings during the year was the elevated levels of securities litigation against life sciences companies. A January 21, 2020 report from the Dechert law firm, entitled “Dechert Survey: Developments in Securities Fraud Class Actions Against U.S. Life Sciences Companies: 2019 Edition” (here), details the 2019 securities lawsuit filings against life sciences companies, and reports that once again life sciences companies were “popular targets” for securities litigation claims.
Continue Reading A Closer Look at 2019 Securities Litigation against Life Sciences Companies