Danaher Corp. entered a commercial dispute with Quidel Corp. over a supply agreement for an assay for the diagnosis of heart failure.
Under the agreement, Quidel holds rights to develop, manufacture, and supply a B-type naturietic peptide, or BNP, assay. The assay is manufactured by Danaher unit Beckman Coulter Inc. Quidel gained commercial rights to the product after it acquired certain assets of Alere, now owned by Abbott Laboratories.
Beckman Coulter said it plans to sell the assay directly to its customers and asked the San Diego courts to clarify and enforce its rights to do so.
Meanwhile, Quidel said it plans to defend the validity of the supply agreement and is confident in its legal position.
Quidel added that in recent weeks it had rejected Danaher's offers to acquire the BNP assay business, as its board found the proposal "inadequate." Further, the Quidel board believes the company's long-term strategy, including the integration of recently acquired assets, will create substantial long-term value for Quidel's shareholders.
Beckman said that while the legal matter is being resolved, it will continue to manufacture and supply Triage BNP assay to Quidel, and the latter's customer relationships will continue as usual.
