Forest Laboratories was a company in the

pharmaceutical industry The pharmaceutical industry is a medical industry that discovers, develops, produces, and markets pharmaceutical goods such as medications and medical devices. Medications are then administered to (or self-administered by) patients for curing ...

incorporated in

Delaware Delaware ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic and South Atlantic states, South Atlantic regions of the United States. It borders Maryland to its south and west, Pennsylvania to its north, New Jersey ...

, with its principal office in

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

. It was known for licensing European pharmaceuticals for sale in the United States. On July 1, 2014, the company was acquired by Actavis (now

Allergan Allergan plc is an American, Irish-domiciled pharmaceutical company that acquires, develops, manufactures and markets brand name drugs and medical devices in the areas of medical aesthetics, eye care, central nervous system, and gastroenterology. ...

History

The company was founded by Hans Lowey in 1956 as a small laboratory service company. In 1967, the company became a

public company A public company is a company whose ownership is organized via shares of share capital, stock which are intended to be freely traded on a stock exchange or in over-the-counter (finance), over-the-counter markets. A public (publicly traded) co ...

via an

initial public offering An initial public offering (IPO) or stock launch is a public offering in which shares of a company are sold to institutional investors and usually also to retail (individual) investors. An IPO is typically underwritten by one or more investm ...

. Ten years later, Howard Solomon became the

chief executive officer A chief executive officer (CEO), also known as a chief executive or managing director, is the top-ranking corporate officer charged with the management of an organization, usually a company or a nonprofit organization. CEOs find roles in variou ...

of the company. In 1984, the company acquired O'Neal Jones & Feldman for $8.8 million after a federal investigation resulted in one of its drugs being recalled. On July 17, 1998, the company received approval from the

Food and Drug Administration The United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA or US FDA) is a List of United States federal agencies, federal agency of the United States Department of Health and Human Services, Department of Health and Human Services. The FDA is respo ...

for Celexa (

Citalopram Citalopram, sold under the brand name Celexa among others, is an antidepressant of the selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRI) class. It is used to treat major depressive disorder, obsessive compulsive disorder, panic disorder, and soci ...

), an

antidepressant Antidepressants are a class of medications used to treat major depressive disorder, anxiety disorders, chronic pain, and addiction. Common side effects of antidepressants include Xerostomia, dry mouth, weight gain, dizziness, headaches, akathi ...

. In 2000, the company cut ties with Warner-Lambert for the marketing of Celexa after Warner-Lambert was acquired by

Pfizer Pfizer Inc. ( ) is an American Multinational corporation, multinational Pharmaceutical industry, pharmaceutical and biotechnology corporation headquartered at The Spiral (New York City), The Spiral in Manhattan, New York City. Founded in 184 ...

. On August 16, 2002, the company received approval from the

for Lexapro (

Escitalopram Escitalopram ( ), sold under the brand names Lexapro and Cipralex, among others, is an antidepressant medication of the selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRI) class. It is mainly used to treat major depressive disorder, generalized ...

), an updated version of Celexa. In 2013, Solomon retired as chief executive officer of the company. In February 2014, the company acquired Aptalis for $2.9 billion. On July 1, 2014, the company was acquired by Actavis (now

). The sale of the company came after pressure from

Carl Icahn Carl Celian Icahn (; born February 16, 1936) is an American businessman and investor. He is the founder and controlling shareholder of Icahn Enterprises, a public company and diversified conglomerate holding company based in Sunny Isles Beach, ...

, the largest shareholder.

Products

Some of the products Forest Laboratories marketed with its partners included: * AeroBid ( flunisolide inhaler) for

allergic rhinitis Allergic rhinitis, of which the seasonal type is called hay fever, is a type of inflammation in the nose that occurs when the immune system overreacts to allergens in the air. It is classified as a type I hypersensitivity reaction. Signs a ...

* Armour Thyroid ( desiccated thyroid extract tablets) for

hypothyroidism Hypothyroidism is an endocrine disease in which the thyroid gland does not produce enough thyroid hormones. It can cause a number of symptoms, such as cold intolerance, poor ability to tolerate cold, fatigue, extreme fatigue, muscle aches, co ...

and pituitary Thyroid-stimulating hormone suppression * Bystolic ( nebivolol) for

hypertension Hypertension, also known as high blood pressure, is a Chronic condition, long-term Disease, medical condition in which the blood pressure in the artery, arteries is persistently elevated. High blood pressure usually does not cause symptoms i ...

* Campral ( acamprosate) for maintenance of abstinence from alcohol in patients with alcohol dependence * Celexa (

citalopram Citalopram, sold under the brand name Celexa among others, is an antidepressant of the selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRI) class. It is used to treat major depressive disorder, obsessive compulsive disorder, panic disorder, and soci ...

) for depression (developed by

Lundbeck H. Lundbeck A/S, commonly referred to as Lundbeck, is a Denmark, Danish international pharmaceutical company engaged in the research, development, manufacturing, marketing and sale of pharmaceuticals across the world. The company’s products ar ...

) * Cervidil (

dinoprostone Prostaglandin E2 (PGE2), also known as dinoprostone, is a naturally occurring prostaglandin with oxytocic properties that is used as a medication. Dinoprostone is used in labor induction, bleeding after delivery, termination of pregnanc ...

vaginal insert) for the initiation and/or continuation of cervical ripening in certain patients * Combunox (

oxycodone Oxycodone, sold under the brand name Roxicodone and OxyContin (which is the extended-release form) among others, is a semi-synthetic opioid used medically for the treatment of moderate to severe pain. It is highly addictive and is a commonly ...

ibuprofen Ibuprofen is a nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID) that is used to relieve pain, fever, and inflammation. This includes dysmenorrhea, painful menstrual periods, migraines, and rheumatoid arthritis. It can be taken oral administration, ...

) for the short-term management of acute moderate-to-severe pain * Daliresp ( roflumilast) for reduction of

COPD Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is a type of progressive lung disease characterized by chronic respiratory symptoms and airflow limitation. GOLD defines COPD as a heterogeneous lung condition characterized by chronic respiratory s ...

exacerbations in patients with severe COPD * Fetzima ( levomilnacipran extended release) for depression * Lexapro (

escitalopram Escitalopram ( ), sold under the brand names Lexapro and Cipralex, among others, is an antidepressant medication of the selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRI) class. It is mainly used to treat major depressive disorder, generalized ...

) for depression and

generalized anxiety disorder Generalized anxiety disorder (GAD) is an anxiety disorder characterized by excessive, uncontrollable and often irrational worry about events or activities. Worry often interferes with daily functioning. Individuals with GAD are often overly con ...

(developed in cooperation with

) * Levothroid ( levothyroxine) for hypothyroidism and pituitary TSH suppression * Linzess ( linaclotide) for constipation-predominant

irritable bowel syndrome Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) is a functional gastrointestinal disorder characterized by a group of symptoms that commonly include abdominal pain, abdominal bloating, and changes in the consistency of bowel movements. These symptoms may ...

and functional constipation * Monurol ( fosfomycin) for certain

urinary tract infection A urinary tract infection (UTI) is an infection that affects a part of the urinary tract. Lower urinary tract infections may involve the bladder (cystitis) or urethra (urethritis) while upper urinary tract infections affect the kidney (pyel ...

s * Namenda and Namenda XR ( memantine) for moderate-to-severe

Alzheimer's disease Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a neurodegenerative disease and the cause of 60–70% of cases of dementia. The most common early symptom is difficulty in remembering recent events. As the disease advances, symptoms can include problems wit ...

* Savella ( milnacipran) for

fibromyalgia Fibromyalgia (FM) is a functional somatic syndrome with symptoms of widespread chronic pain, accompanied by fatigue, sleep disturbance including awakening unrefreshed, and Cognitive deficit, cognitive symptoms. Other symptoms can include he ...

* Sudocrem medicated cream for

irritant diaper dermatitis Irritant diaper dermatitis (IDD, also called a diaper rash or nappy rash) is skin rash in the diaper (in British and Australian English "nappy") area, caused by various skin disorders and/or irritants. Generic irritant diaper dermatitis is charac ...

* Teflaro ( ceftaroline fosamil) for acute bacterial skin and skin structure infections and community-acquired pneumonia caused by susceptible bacteria * Tiazac ( diltiazem hydrochloride) for hypertension and chronic stable

angina pectoris Angina, also known as angina pectoris, is chest pain or pressure, usually caused by insufficient blood flow to the heart muscle (myocardium). It is most commonly a symptom of coronary artery disease. Angina is typically the result of part ...

* Thyrolar ( liotrix) for hypothyroidism and pituitary TSH suppression * Tudorza Pressair ( aclidinium bromide inhalation powder) for COPD * Viibryd ( vilazodone) for depression

Controversies

Illegal distribution and promotion of medicines

In September 2010, the company agreed to pay $313 million to resolve allegations of civil and criminal liability relating to

felony A felony is traditionally considered a crime of high seriousness, whereas a misdemeanor is regarded as less serious. The term "felony" originated from English common law (from the French medieval word "''félonie''") to describe an offense that r ...

obstruction of justice In United States jurisdictions, obstruction of justice refers to a number of offenses that involve unduly influencing, impeding, or otherwise interfering with the justice system, especially the legal and procedural tasks of prosecutors, investiga ...

, and the illegal distribution and promotion of pharmaceuticals, charges to which it pled guilty. One of the pharmaceutical-related charges was a

misdemeanor A misdemeanor (American English, spelled misdemeanour elsewhere) is any "lesser" criminal act in some common law legal systems. Misdemeanors are generally punished less severely than more serious felonies, but theoretically more so than admi ...

charge of illegally promoting the Celexa and Lexapro for unapproved uses in treating pediatric depression. The other drug-related charge was a misdemeanor charge of distributing the unapproved drug Levothroid in violation of the

Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act The United States Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (abbreviated as FFDCA, FDCA, or FD&C) is a set of laws passed by the United States Congress in 1938 giving authority to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to oversee the food safety ...

. Certain of the criminal activities were revealed with the help of

whistleblower Whistleblowing (also whistle-blowing or whistle blowing) is the activity of a person, often an employee, revealing information about activity within a private or public organization that is deemed illegal, immoral, illicit, unsafe, unethical or ...

s, who received $14 million from the settlement. Forest Laboratories has been accused of using unlawful deals to prevent generic versions of its Alzheimer's disease drug Namenda from entering the market.

Tax avoidance via transfer pricing

In 2010, the company was criticized for legally moving its profits offshore via

transfer pricing Transfer pricing refers to the rules and methods for pricing transactions within and between enterprises under common ownership or control. Because of the potential for cross-border controlled transactions to distort taxable income, tax authorit ...

Notes

{{Reflist, 1 Pharmaceutical companies established in 1956 Defunct pharmaceutical companies of the United States Defunct companies based in New York City Companies formerly listed on the New York Stock Exchange 1960s initial public offerings 2014 mergers and acquisitions Pharmaceutical companies disestablished in 2014