Walgreens Boots Alliance has agreed to a $192.5 million settlement in a class action lawsuit brought by investors in Rite Aid who alleged that Walgreens had misled them in 2017 concerning the scrutiny surrounding the proposed merger of the two drugstore giants, per Reuters.
The agreement, which was submitted to Pennsylvania federal court on Wednesday, is contingent upon approval by District Judge Jennifer Wilson.
The lawsuit, which centered on statements made by Walgreens and its executives about the intended merger of the two prominent U.S. pharmacy chains, first announced in 2015, was described by David Knotts, an attorney for the shareholders, as an “intensely fought” case. “We’re very pleased with the result and look forward to the court’s review,” Knotts commented.
Related: US: Walgreens scraps Rite Aid deal, buys stores instead
The lawsuit specifically accused Walgreens of minimizing the attention from U.S. antitrust regulators, a practice that allegedly commenced in October 2016. Ultimately, in June 2017, Walgreens abandoned the takeover plan after failing to secure approval from the Federal Trade Commission. Instead, they opted to purchase roughly 42% of Rite Aid’s existing stores for $4.38 billion that same year.
This settlement comes at a time when Rite Aid is grappling with bankruptcy protection due to substantial debt and costs stemming from opioid litigation.
Source: Reuters
Featured News
Ropes & Gray Welcomes New Partner to Boston Antitrust Practice
Nov 4, 2024 by
CPI
Private Equity Giants Eye Minority Stake in Intel’s Altera Chip Unit
Nov 4, 2024 by
CPI
Michael Jordan’s NASCAR Antitrust Case Kicks Off in Federal Court
Nov 4, 2024 by
CPI
Fifth Circuit Questions FTC’s Authority in Intuit’s Challenge to Internal Adjudication
Nov 4, 2024 by
CPI
EU Antitrust Decision on Novo Holdings’ Catalent Acquisition Set for December
Nov 4, 2024 by
CPI
Antitrust Mix by CPI
Antitrust Chronicle® – Remedies Revisited
Oct 30, 2024 by
CPI
Fixing the Fix: Updating Policy on Merger Remedies
Oct 30, 2024 by
CPI
Methodology Matters: The 2017 FTC Remedies Study
Oct 30, 2024 by
CPI
U.S. v. AT&T: Five Lessons for Vertical Merger Enforcement
Oct 30, 2024 by
CPI
The Search for Antitrust Remedies in Tech Leads Beyond Antitrust
Oct 30, 2024 by
CPI