The dispute concerns Abbott’s role in winning the approval of U.S. anti-trust regulators for the merger, which was announced in February. Alere filed the lawsuit in August, looking to force Abbott to obtain all antitrust approvals required to complete the acquisition. Last week, Delaware Chancery Court Judge Sam Glasscock put the hearing on the fast track, but urged both sides to consider mediation before tomorrow, when a trial date was to be set.
Alere said yesterday in a court filing that the duo is considering former Delaware Chancellor William Chandler as the mediator, although Chandler is not available until the end of the month; Alere wants to start the process immediately.
Alere claims that Abbott’s $25 billion buyout of St. Jude Medical (NYSE:STJ), announced in April after the Alere deal surfaced, is the real reason for Abbott’s cold feet. Abbott alleges that a series of federal probes and Alere’s delay in filing its 2015 annual report are behind its desire to spike the transaction.
One of the probes, a U.S. Justice Dept. investigation into its sales practices, was revealed after Abbott agreed to buy Alere in February. A Securities & Exchange Commission investigation into its revenue recognition was already public at the time of the deal.
Under the current deal, Abbott has nearly 8 more months to receive antitrust approval and close the deal. The acquisition has seen its share of hiccups along the way, including a rejected $50 million offer from Abbott to spike the merger and a securities fraud lawsuit accusing Alere of artificially inflating its share price ahead of announcing the merger.
Earlier in August, Alere said it is confident the potential $6 billion merger will go through, despite concerns that it could fail.
Material from Reuters was used in this report.
The post Abbott, Alere to mediate merger dispute appeared first on MassDevice.
from MassDevice http://ift.tt/2cwBDFD
Cap comentari:
Publica un comentari a l'entrada