Post-Gazette responds to Mylan lawsuit

Over the past month, the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette newspaper has offered little comment on Mylan's (MYL) decision to sue the paper over articles that led to an FDA investigation of the drugmaker's manufacturing facility, but now the paper is firing back. In its answer to the lawsuit, the Post-Gazette asks the U.S. District Court to dismiss the drugmaker's lawsuit and order Mylan to cover its court costs.

The paper says it had a constitutional right to publish the reports on manufacturing missteps at the Morgantown, WV plant. The lawsuit has no merit, the Post-Gazette contends, and it is merely an attempt by Mylan to force the authors of the article to reveal their confidential sources.

You'll recall that Pittsburgh, PA-based Mylan filed the lawsuit seeking the return of confidential documents obtained by the reporters, the sources of that information, as well as monetary compensation. The drugmaker claims the paper acted improperly, misconstruing information in those documents, and caused its stock to drop.

The Post-Gazette is standing behind its reporters and says the information they obtained was "meticulously accurate." As for the drop in Mylan's stock? "Any decrease in stock price or diminution in value to plaintiffs was caused, in whole or in part, by the stock market environment, financial markets, economy and/or by mismanagement of the companies and/or by actions of the companies' management and/or officers and/or by the appointment or election of specific company officers," the paper stated in its answer to Mylan's complaint (as quoted by The West Virginia Record).

- Check out the WVR report for more

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