Here A Lawsuit, There A Lawsuit

Verus charges AstraZeneca with breach of contract: AstraZeneca was sued for $1.28 billion in New York state court on May 25 by Verus Pharmaceuticals, which accused the drug maker of backing out of a deal to develop a pediatric asthma medication and, instead, striking a deal with Map Pharmaceuticals, which was developing a similar drug. AstraZeneca and Verus planned a new formulation of the active ingredient in AstraZeneca's Pulmicort asthma drug that would be easier to use and work faster. In its lawsuit, Verus claimed AstraZeneca agreed to pursue development at least until a meeting with the Food and Drug Administration at the end of Phase II clinical trials. Instead, Verus charged, AstraZeneca backed out of the deal in December 2008 without scheduling a meeting and suddenly struck a similar arrangement with Map. Verus is seeking $280 million in compensatory damages and $1 billion in punitive damages from AstraZeneca, which the smaller company accuses of being motivated by "unmitigated greed." AstraZeneca denied the charges