Fujisawa Racketeering Claim Reinstated

A three-judge panel of the US Court of Appeals has reached a unanimousdecision to reinstate the federal civil racketeering claim brought by Fujisawa Pharmaceutical Co and Fujisawa USA against John Kapoor. The case has been remanded to the Federal District Court in Chicago for trial.

Fujisawa had alleged in a court case last year that Dr Kapoor had engaged in racketeering during the six-year period prior to Fujisawa acquiring the US company Lyphomed, which was then controlled by Dr Kapoor. In July 1996, the Federal District Court in Chicago found that the Japanese company had not made these allegations sufficiently.

Noboru Maeda, president of Fujisawa USA, said: "we are very pleased that the Court of Appeals reinstated Fujisawa's racketeering claim against Dr Kapoor, and we are confident that we will prevail at trial on that claim, as well as our common law claims."