PHILADELPHIA – A Florida city's retirement plan alleges it was damaged by declining prices of shares in Teva Pharmaceuticals, the world's largest generic drug manufacturer, over a complaint was filed against it over allegations of anti-competitive conduct.
Employees' Retirement System of the city of St. Petersburg, Florida, individually and on behalf of all others similarly situated, filed a complaint on June 21 in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania against Teva Pharmaceutical Industries LTD, Kare Schultz and Michael McClellan citing the Securities Exchange Act.
The suit concerns a period between Aug. 4, 2017, and May 10 and those who purchased Teva American Depositary Shares (ADS) during that period. The plaintiff alleges during that period, the defendants repeatedly made false and misleading statements denying that Teva was involved in any anti-competitive practices in the generic drug industry.
Philadelphia federal courthouse
The suit states in August 2016, Teva's U.S. subsidiary, Teva Pharmaceuticals USA, received a subpoena from the U.S. Department of Justice's Antitrust Division regarding the marketing and price of Teva generic drugs. The plaintiff alleges that Teva "consistently maintained its innocence, denying any involvement in anti-competitive conduct."
The plaintiff alleges on May 10, a 524-page complaint was filed against Teva by 44 states over allegations of conspiracy to raise, fix and maintain prices on generic drugs. As a result, Teva ADS prices declined nearly 15 percent, causing damages to the plaintiff and other class members.
The plaintiff is seeking all reasonable sums due, attorney fees and court costs. The plaintiff is represented by Promisloff Law PC in Malvern and Joseph E. White III and Lester R. Hooker of Saxena White PA in Boca Raton, Florida and David R. Kaplan of the same firm in San Diego.
U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsyl,vania case number 2:19-CV-02711