U.S. Supreme Court agrees to hear Amgen appeal

[okarol]

U.S. Supreme Court agrees to hear Amgen appeal
By Stephanie Hoops
Posted June 11, 2012 at 10 p.m.
DiscussPrintAAA
The U.S. Supreme Court agreed Monday to hear an appeal by Amgen to consider whether plaintiff investors must prove that a company's public statements materially affected stock prices before they may pursue a class-action lawsuit.

Investors, led by Connecticut Retirement Plans and Trust Funds, allege the Thousand Oaks-based biotech company committed securities fraud by making misstatements about two anemia drugs. The plaintiffs say the misstatements inflated stock prices.

Investors say officers at Amgen failed to disclose safety information about the drugs Epogen and Aranesp in an earnings call with analysts before a 2004 meeting with Food and Drug Administration oncologists.

The plaintiffs also say Amgen concealed details about a clinical trial that was canceled over concerns that an Amgen product exacerbated tumor growth, that Amgen exaggerated FDA-approved uses and that the company engaged in an off-label marketing scheme.

The plaintiffs say they bought Amgen stock at an inflated price in reliance on misstatements and omissions.

Amgen has denied the allegations and challenged the plaintiffs' move to get the case certified as a class-action lawsuit. The U.S. District Court in Los Angeles certified the class in August. In November, the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed the certification.

Amgen appealed to the Supreme Court.

"We are gratified that the court accepted this important case for review," Amgen spokeswoman Christine Regan said Monday after the high court announced it would hear the case.

Amgen says the plaintiffs did not prove that what they call false statements affected the stock price and has submitted evidence showing, "The truth behind each of the supposed misstatements had already entered the market by the time the misstatements were made," according to court records.

The justices will decide whether the investors must show evidence the misrepresentations they allege materially affected the stock price before a class action may be certified.

The lower courts ruled that such proof is not necessary.

On behalf of a unanimous three-judge panel of the appeals court, Appellate Justice Barry Silverman wrote, "The only elements a plaintiff must prove at the class certification stage are whether the market for the stock was efficient and whether the alleged misrepresentations were public — issues that Amgen does not contest here."



Read more: http://www.vcstar.com/news/2012/jun/11/amgen-appeal-in-lawsuit-to-go-to-us-supreme/#ixzz1xkZtjqbF
- vcstar.com