Richard Manning provided trial testimony that contributed to a decisive legal victory for biotech startup Inhibrx in a $460 million trade secrets case brought by I-Mab Biopharma in Delaware federal district court.

Secretariat was engaged by law firms Potter Anderson and Wilson Sonsini to provide expert testimony and respond to Plaintiff’s damages claims for this case on behalf of their clients, Inhibrx Biosciences and Inhibrix co-founder Dr. Brendan Eckelman.

On November 1, 2024, a federal jury in the US District Court for the District of Delaware unanimously sided with Inhibrx, rejecting all allegations of misappropriation and finding that the data in question did not qualify as legally-protectable trade secrets.

“I am pleased that my testimony was accepted by the court and helped the jury reach a verdict,” said Dr. Manning. “I trust that my economic analysis, combined with my prior experience in the biopharmaceutical industry, helped the jury understand the facts of this complex, high-stakes case.”

I-Mab filed the lawsuit on March 1, 2022, claiming that Inhibrx and Dr. Eckleman misappropriated confidential information related to I-Mab research projects during prior arbitration proceedings involving I-Mab, for which Dr. Eckelman had served as an expert witness. The Delaware jury found no basis for these claims and awarded the plaintiff $0 in damages, based in part on Dr. Manning’s testimony. The jury’s findings marked a complete victory for Inhibrx and Dr. Eckelman.

Read more about this case on Law360 (subscription required).