Shareholder Class Action Filed Against Eli Lilly and Company by the Law Firm of Schiffrin Barroway Topaz & Kessler, LLP

    RADNOR, Pa., April 2 /PRNewswire/ -- The following statement was issued
 today by the law firm of Schiffrin Barroway Topaz & Kessler, LLP:
     Notice is hereby given that a class action lawsuit was filed in the
 United States District Court for the Eastern District of New York on behalf
 of all securities purchasers of Eli Lilly and Company ( LLY) ("Lilly"
 or the "Company") from March 28, 2002 and December 22, 2006, inclusive (the
 "Class Period").
     If you wish to discuss this action or have any questions concerning
 this notice or your rights or interests with respect to these matters,
 please contact Schiffrin Barroway Topaz & Kessler, LLP (Darren J. Check,
 Esq. or Richard A. Maniskas, Esq.) toll free at 1-888-299-7706 or
 1-610-667-7706, or via e-mail at info@sbtklaw.com.' target='_blank' title='info@sbtklaw.com.'>info@sbtklaw.com.
     The Complaint charges Lilly and certain of its officers and directors
 with violations of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 for disseminating
 false and misleading statements concerning Zyprexa, the Company's
 best-selling product.
     More specifically, the Complaint alleges that the Company failed to
 disclose and misrepresented the following material adverse facts which were
 known to defendants or recklessly disregarded by them: (a) that they were
 aware of the clear link between Zyprexa and diabetes; and yet failed to
 warn the public at large of the serious and material risks associated with
 Zyprexa use; (b) that they had engaged in an illicit scheme to offset a
 drop in sales that was certain to occur (and, in fact, did occur) when
 reports of Zyprexa's side effects surfaced, by creating a marketing plan
 for Zyprexa which included, as a primary component, the evaluation and
 pursuit of sales opportunities for the drug based on "off-label" uses; (c)
 that the growth rate in Zyprexa sales would not be sustainable once
 information about the health risks of Zyprexa and Lilly's illegal marketing
 plan were disclosed publicly; (d) that they disregarded data that
 undermined the "safety and effectiveness" of the drug; (e) that their
 "quality-assurance procedures relating to the quality and integrity of
 scientific information and production" as it pertained to Zyprexa were
 woefully inadequate; (f) that, by engaging in an illicit "off-label"
 marketing" program as to Zyprexa, they had not "enhance[d]" its policies
 and procedures designed to assure that its marketing and promotional
 practices and physician communications "compl[ied] with promotional laws
 and regulations;" (g) that they failed to warn the public of the serious
 health risks associated with Zyprexa use and that its illicit "off-label"
 marketing program was a direct violation of its own code of conduct as set
 forth in "The Red Book;" and (h) that their illicit scheme of concealing
 the side effects of Zyprexa and engaging in a massive illegal off- label
 marketing campaign potentially subjected Lilly to substantial regulatory
 fines, penalties and other legal action, thereby compromising the Company's
 overall financial condition and prospects.
     Sales of Zyprexa grew from $3.69 billion to $4.42 billion between 2002
 and 2004, and Lilly's stock price increased from $43.75 per share to $76.95
 per share between July 18, 2002 and May 7, 2004. Throughout the Class
 Period, Lilly had internal information concerning a dangerous connection
 between the use of Zyprexa and extreme weight gain and diabetes.
     During the Class Period, in the face of mounting independent research
 connecting Zyprexa to diabetes and weight gain, and the lawsuits by persons
 who suffered these side-effects, Lilly emphatically denied any such link.
 Yet, as public agencies raised warnings about the safety of Zyprexa, sales
 slowed and Lilly's stock price dropped from $76.95 per share to $50.34 per
 share between May 7, 2004 and October 25, 2004 (representing a loss of
 market capitalization of over $30 billion).
     However, recent reports in The New York Times demonstrate that Lilly
 knew of the very health risks that it denied repeatedly and that the
 Company also purposefully marketed Zyprexa for illegal, off-label uses.
     Thus, the over $30 billion dollar decline in Lilly's stock price
 between May 7, 2004 and October 25, 2004 was the direct result of
 defendants' fraudulent conduct. Articles appearing in The New York Times
 between December 17 and 21, 2006 publicly disclosed for the first time that
 (a) the Company had engaged in a decade-long effort to play down the health
 risks of Zyprexa; and (b) Lilly actively marketed Zyprexa for illegal
 off-label uses (such as to treat older patients with symptoms of dementia).
     The publication of those articles caused an additional $3.49 per share
 decline in the Company's stock price (or 6.4 percent), and represented a
 further market loss of approximately $3.5 billion.
     Plaintiff seeks to recover damages on behalf of class members and is
 represented by the law firm of Schiffrin Barroway Topaz & Kessler which
 prosecutes class actions in both state and federal courts throughout the
 country. Schiffrin Barroway Topaz & Kessler is a driving force behind
 corporate governance reform, and has recovered billions of dollars on
 behalf of institutional and individual investors from the United States and
 around the world.
     For more information about Schiffrin Barroway Topaz & Kessler or to
 sign up to participate in this action online, please visit www.sbtklaw.com
     If you are a member of the class described above, you may, not later
 than June 1, 2007, move the Court to serve as lead plaintiff of the class,
 if you so choose. A lead plaintiff is a representative party that acts on
 behalf of other class members in directing the litigation. In order to be
 appointed lead plaintiff, the Court must determine that the class member's
 claim is typical of the claims of other class members, and that the class
 member will adequately represent the class. Under certain circumstances,
 one or more class members may together serve as "lead plaintiff." Your
 ability to share in any recovery is not, however, affected by the decision
 whether or not to serve as a lead plaintiff. You may retain Schiffrin
 Barroway Topaz & Kessler or other counsel of your choice, to serve as your
 counsel in this action.
     CONTACT:  Schiffrin Barroway Topaz & Kessler, LLP
               Darren J. Check, Esq.
               Richard A. Maniskas, Esq.
               280 King of Prussia Road
               Radnor, PA 19087
               1-888-299-7706 (toll free) or 1-610-667-7706
               Or by e-mail at info@sbtklaw.com
 
 

SOURCE Schiffrin Barroway Topaz & Kessler, LLP