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Legal Proceedings, Commitments and Contingencies (Notes)
6 Months Ended
Jun. 30, 2016
Commitments and Contingencies Disclosure [Abstract]  
Legal Proceedings, Commitments and Contingencies
Legal Proceedings, Commitments and Contingencies
Legal Proceedings

On December 3, 2015, we agreed in principle to resolve and settle the consolidated shareholder derivative action, In re Galena Biopharma, Inc. Derivative Litigation, Civil Action No. 3:14-cv-00382-SI, pending in the United States District Court for the District of Oregon against us and certain of our current and former officers and directors. On April 21, 2016, the District Court of Oregon held the final approval hearing of the settlement with the derivative plaintiffs after which the District Court continued the final approval hearing until June 23, 2016 and requested the parties submit additional briefing by June 9, 2016 on the fee request by the derivative plaintiffs’ attorneys. Following the hearing on June 23, 2016, on June 24, 2016, the U.S. District Court for the District of Oregon entered a final order and judgment in In re Galena Biopharma, Inc. Derivative Litigation, granting final approval to the settlement.
On the same day, the Court also issued an opinion and order awarding attorney’s fees of $4.5 million plus costs, which will be paid by our insurance carriers. The settlement includes a payment of $15 million in cash by our insurance carriers, which we used to fund a portion of the class action settlement, and cancellation of 1,200,000 outstanding director stock options. The settlement also requires that we adopt and implement certain corporate governance measures. The settlement does not include any admission of wrongdoing or liability on the part of us or the individual defendants and includes a full release of us and the current and former officers and directors in connection with the allegations made in the consolidated federal derivative actions and state court derivative actions.

On December 3, 2015, we also agreed in principal to resolve and settle the securities putative class action lawsuit, In re Galena Biopharma, Inc. Securities Litigation, Civil Action No. 3:14-cv-00367-SI, pending against us, certain of our current and former officers and directors and other defendants in the United States District Court for the District of Oregon. Following the hearing on June 23, 2016, on June 24, 2016, the U.S. District Court for the District of Oregon entered a final order and partial judgment in In re Galena Biopharma, Inc. Securities Litigation, granting final approval of the settlement. On the same day, the Court also issued an opinion and order awarding attorney’s fees of $4.5 million plus costs, which is paid out of the settlement funds. The settlement agreement provides for a payment of $20 million to the class and the dismissal of all claims against us and our current and former officers and directors in connection with the consolidated federal securities class actions. Of the $20 million settlement payment to the class, $16.7 million was paid by our insurance carriers and $2.3 million in cash was paid by us on July 1, 2016, along with $1 million in shares of our common stock (480,053 shares) paid by us on July 6, 2016. We will be responsible for defense costs and any settlements or judgments incurred for any related opt-out lawsuits. As of June 30, 2016 our insurance carriers paid $21.7 million. The Company paid $2.3 million in cash and $1 million in common stock on July 1, 2016.

In July 2016, we have resolved claims brought by shareholders that relate to the securities litigation mentioned above in one case for $150,000 plus $150,000 in shares (291,262) of our common stock, and in another case for $1.5 million in shares of our common stock (3,366,750 shares). The shares issued in connection with such settlements are included in the secondary offering filed on July 25, 2016. The settlements do not include any admission of wrongdoing or liability on the part of us or any of the current or former directors and officers and includes a full release of us and the current and former directors and officers in connection with the allegations made. We are not aware of any other claims made by shareholders who have opted out of the securities litigation.


The litigation settlements are summarized as follow as of June 30, 2016 (in thousands)
 
Amount
Class action settlement
$
20,000

Derivative settlement
5,000

Shareholders securities litigation settlements
$
1,800

Total settlements
$
26,800

 
 
Paid by the insurance carriers
$
21,700

Payable by the company in cash (paid in July 2016)
2,450

Payable by the company in common stock (paid in July 2016)
2,650

Total settlements
$
26,800



We are aware that the SEC is investigating certain matters relating to the use of certain outside investor-relations professionals by us and other public companies. We have been in contact with the SEC staff through our counsel and are cooperating with the investigation and in discussions with the SEC staff to resolve the investigation.

A federal investigation of two of the high-prescribing physicians for Abstral has resulted in the criminal prosecution of the two physicians for alleged violations of the federal False Claims Act and other federal statutes. The criminal trial is set for October 2016. We have received a trial subpoena for documents in connection with that investigation and we have been in contact with the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Alabama, which is handling the criminal trial, and are cooperating in the production of documents. On April 28, 2016, a second superseding indictment was filed in the criminal case, which added additional information about the defendant physicians and provided information regarding the facts and circumstances involving a rebate agreement between the Company and the defendant physicians’ pharmacy as well as their ownership of our stock. Certain former employees have received trial subpoenas to appear at the trial and provide oral testimony. We have agreed to reimburse those former employees’ attorney’s fees. To our knowledge, we are not a target or subject of that investigation.

There also have been federal and state investigations of a company that has a product that competes with Abstral in the same therapeutic class, and we have learned that the FDA and other governmental agencies are investigating our Abstral promotion practices. On December 16, 2015, we received a subpoena issued by the U.S. Attorney’s Office in District of New Jersey requesting the production of a broad range of documents pertaining to our marketing and promotional practices for Abstral. We have been in contact with the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of New Jersey and are cooperating in the production of the requested documents. We are unable to predict whether we could become subject to legal or administrative actions as a result of these matters, or the impact of such matters. If we are found to be in violation of the False Claims Act, Anti-Kickback Statute, Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, or any other applicable state or any federal fraud and abuse laws, we may be subject to penalties, such as civil and criminal penalties, damages, fines, or an administrative action of exclusion from government health care reimbursement programs. We can make no assurances as to the time or resources that will need to be devoted to these matters or their outcome, or the impact, if any, that these matters or any resulting legal or administrative proceedings may have on our business or financial condition.