The chief executive of pharmaceutical company Elan has defended his record and the company's strategy in a letter to shareholders.
Kelly Martin's letter said the company's financial position had improved in the past number of years, and that it expected these positive trends to continue. Mr Martin said the outlook for its most important drug, Tysabri, remained strong.
Danish Elan investor Ib Sonderby has made strong criticisms of Elan's board and management team. Mr Martin's letter claimed Mr Sonderby had refused to meet Elan's management despite 'repeated offers', and accused him of spreading misinformation and recycling which had already been addressed.
Mr Martin's letter rejects in particular claims made by Mr Sonderby about conflicts of interest on the part of some directors in some of the company's recent deals. Mr Sonderby, a former stockbroker, is due to hold a conference call tomorrow to update investors on his campaign against Elan's management.
Elan was yesterday granted an interim injunction preventing two of its US-based board members from establishing 'a parallel' investigation into concerns about corporate governance at the company.
The High Court was told that two shareholders and directors of the company, Jack Schuler and Vaughn Bryson, had attempted to engage a firm of lawyers in the US to carry out an investigation. This followed a complaint made by them at a meeting of the company's audit committee in May last.
