Bristol Myers Squibb must face USD 6.4 billion lawsuit over delayed cancer drug

The trustee said Bristol Myers had delayed the submission of critical information to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, and failed to prepare its manufacturing plants for inspections.

Bristol said the lawsuit must be dismissed because its agreement to pay the Celgene shareholders had expired.

But the judge said the agreement explicitly provided that UMB could sue, and that Bristol Myers was not excused from material breaches that predated the agreement's expiration.

"(Bristol Myers) cites no authority to support the proposition that a breach of a contract cannot, as a matter of law, 'continue' after termination of the contract," Furman wrote.

David Elsberg, a lawyer for UMB, said the trustee was "delighted" and looked forward to proving its case.

Bristol Myers won FDA approval for Breyanzi on Feb. 5, 2021, to treat non-Hodgkin's lymphoma. Its chemical name is lisocabtagene maraleucel.

The case is UMB Bank NA v Bristol-Myers Squibb Co et al, U.S. District Court, Southern District of New York, No. 21-04897