United States Fourth Circuit

Dismissal of complaint alleging securities fraud is affirmed where Appellants failed to raise the requisite "strong inference" of scienter and failed to allege that defendant-company's prospectuses were false with the particularity required by FRCP 9(b). The facts suggest that Defendants withheld information from the market with the lawful intent to protect the company's competitive interests, not to deceive investors as to the prospects for its experimental dry-eye drug.

Appellate Information

• Decided 12/12/2008
• Published 12/12/2008

Judges

• Before WILKINSON, Circuit Judge, IRENE M. KEELEY, United States District Judge for the Northern District of West Virginia, sitting by designation, and HENRY E. HUDSON, United States District Judge for the Eastern District of Virginia, sitting by designation.

Court

• United States Fourth Circuit

Counsel

• For Appellees:
  
• ARGUED:  Maya Saxena, Saxena White, P.A., Boca Raton, Florida, for Appellants.  Barry M. Kaplan, Wilson, Sonsini, Goodrich & Rosati, Seattle, Washington, for Appellees.   ON BRIEF:  Christopher L. Nelson, Jennifer Keeney, Schiffrin, Barroway, Topaz & Kessler, L.L.P., Radnor, Pennsylvania;  Joseph E. White, III, Christopher S. Jones, Saxena White, P.A., Boca Raton, Florida, for Appellants.  Nicholas I. Porritt, C. Paul Chalmers, Scott A. Lowry, Wilson, Sonsini, Goodrich & Rosati, Washington, D.C., for Appellees.