Secretary of State for Health & Ors v Servier Laboratories Ltd & Ors

Secretary of State for Health & Ors v Servier Laboratories Ltd & Ors

A stay of the proceedings is ordered until shortly after the conclusion of the oral hearing before the European Commission, to avoid unfairly burdening Servier with parallel litigation and to prevent the risk of conflicting decisions. However, the stay is not to continue beyond a short period after the oral hearing, and standard disclosure should then proceed. The French Blocking Statute does not justify further delay in disclosure, as the risk of prosecution is merely theoretical. The possible joinder of further parties does not affect the decision on the stay.

Parties
Claimants: The Secretary of State for Health and Others; Defendant: Servier Laboratories Limited; Defendant: Servier Research and Development Limited; Defendant: Les Laboratoires Servier SAS; Defendant: Servier SAS
Jurisdiction
England and Wales
Judgment Date
12 October 2012
Procedural Posture
Civil (competition/antitrust, Tort) / Interlocutory Application for Stay Pending Outcome of European Commission Investigation
Outcome
Stay granted in part
Legal Topics
Stay of Proceedings, Abuse of Dominant Position, Patent Settlement Agreements, Tortious Interference With Economic Interests, Disclosure Obligations, French Blocking Statute
Competition Law Intellectual Property Law Tort Law Civil Procedure Stay of Proceedings Abuse of Dominant Position Patent Settlement Agreements Tortious Interference With Economic Interests +2 more

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Parties

The Secretary of State for Health and Others

Claimants

Servier Laboratories Limited

Defendant

Servier Research and Development Limited

Defendant

Les Laboratoires Servier SAS

Defendant

Servier SAS

Defendant

Procedural Posture

Civil (competition/antitrust, Tort) / Interlocutory Application for Stay Pending Outcome of European Commission Investigation

Legal Issues

  1. 1 Whether to grant a stay of proceedings pending the outcome of the European Commission's investigation into alleged infringements of Articles 101 and 102 TFEU by Servier
  2. 2 Whether the French Blocking Statute prevents disclosure by the French defendants
  3. 3 Whether the claimants are prejudiced by delay in disclosure and evidence gathering

Ratio Decidendi

A stay of the proceedings is ordered until shortly after the conclusion of the oral hearing before the European Commission, to avoid unfairly burdening Servier with parallel litigation and to prevent the risk of conflicting decisions. However, the stay is not to continue beyond a short period after the oral hearing, and standard disclosure should then proceed. The French Blocking Statute does not justify further delay in disclosure, as the risk of prosecution is merely theoretical. The possible joinder of further parties does not affect the decision on the stay.

Court Disposition

Stay granted in part

Orders

  • Proceedings stayed until shortly after the conclusion of the oral hearing before the European Commission; thereafter, standard disclosure to proceed with an adjusted timetable as agreed or directed by the court.
  • Servier to provide formal responses to certain Part 18 requests for further information.