Imperial Brands Sued in US Over Nicotine Pouch Transaction (1)

Imperial Brands Plc is trying to dodge deal payments by breaching volume purchase provisions of a transaction aimed at breaking into the American market for oral nicotine pouches, an unsealed lawsuit said Thursday.

Canadian pouch manufacturer TJP Labs Inc. is suing affiliates of the European tobacco giant, including its principal US unit, saying they’ve repudiated the minimum purchase clauses by trying to “recharacterize” them as “merely non-binding forecasts” rather than contractual pledges. That has put certain deferred payments out of reach by making it impossible to hit the milestones they’re pegged to, the suit says.

The dispute in Delaware’s Chancery ...