Actelion granted motion for new trial in Asahi damages dispute

Europe’s largest biotech company, Actelion (SIX: ATLN), announced this morning that, the Superior Court of the State of California, USA, has granted its motion for a new trial on compensatory damages awarded to Japanese drugmaker Asahi Kasei Pharma unless the latter consents, by November 10, 2011, to a reduction of the jury award by a further $99.2 million, thus respecting - in part - a request that Asahi make an election between damages for alleged lost profits or alleged development costs relating to the now dropped development of the rho kinase inhibitor fasudil.

Any such new trial would only address compensatory damages, said Actelion, which recorded a provision of $577 million (485.2 million Swiss francs) in the second quarter financial statements and just last week posted a loss of 85.6  million francs largely as a result of the provision (The Pharma Letter October 20).

If Asahi accepts this proposal - and when combined with the court's July 29 reduction of $70.35 million - the court's final award would be $407.325 million including punitive damages of $30 million against certain individual officers of the company.