A Manhattan federal judge has ruled that the U.S. Supreme Court’s recent ruling in Stoneridge Investment Partners v. Scientific-Atlanta Inc., 128 S.Ct. 761, does not shield from securities fraud claims a Bristol-Myers Squibb Co. executive who made no public statements but whose behavior is central to the company’s alleged misconduct.
Bristol-Myers shareholders are suing the company and two of its top executives for allegedly misleading them about patent litigation against Apotex, a manufacturer of a generic version of Bristol-Myers’ best-selling Plavix blood-thinning drug. According to shareholders, the company bargained away much of its right to seek damages for patent infringement to strike a licensing deal with Apotex that was subsequently rejected by regulators.
