AstraZeneca Reaches $51 Million Settlement in Pay-for-Delay Suit

AstraZeneca PLC has agreed to pay $51 million to settle claims it entered into an unlawful deal to limit competition for antipsychotic drug Seroquel XR.

Direct purchaser plaintiffs on Thursday requested preliminary approval of the deal in the US District Court for the District of Delaware, after nearly six years of litigation.

“The proposed cash Settlements are in the best interests of the Class, since, if finally approved, the Settlements assure that Class members will receive substantial cash payments while avoiding the inherent risks of trial and potential appeal,” the plaintiffs said.

The case dates to 2019, when the direct purchaser plaintiffs sued AstraZeneca and another drug maker, Handa Pharmaceuticals LLC, claiming they delayed the availability of less expensive, generic versions of Seroquel XR through unlawful reverse payments.

Federal agencies have scrutinized such deals in which a brand manufacturer pays a generic manufacturer to delay or abandon market entry. In this case, AstraZeneca allegedly struck a deal with Handa to delay generic Seroquel XR to protect AstraZeneca’s branded version of the drug.

AstraZeneca in 2022 lost a consolidated bid to dismiss antitrust claims, after a court said the plaintiffs adequately alleged an impermissible agreement to limit competition in the market for the drug.

The direct purchaser plaintiffs are represented by firms including Berger Montague PC, Garwin Gerstein & Fisher LLP, Cooch and Taylor PA and Faruqi & Faruqi LLP. AstraZeneca is represented by McCarter & English LLP.

The case is In re Seroquel XR (Extended Release Quetiapine Fumarate) Antitrust Litig., D. Del., No. 1:20-cv-01076, 5/29/25.