Novartis sues Takeda in U.S. over trade secrets dispute

Swiss drugmaker says ex-employee hired by Japanese rival took confidential data

Novartis says around 10,000 internal files were transferred to a personal email address by an employee who left to join Takeda Pharmaceutical. (Photo by Kohei Yamada)

KOHEI YAMADA and HINAKO BANNO, Nikkei staff writers

October 28, 2023 00:39 JST

TOKYO -- Swiss drugmaker Novartis has filed a complaint in the U.S. against Japanese rival Takeda Pharmaceutical to determine if a former Novartis employee improperly disseminated trade secrets.

Novartis has asked a superior court in the state of Massachusetts to issue a subpoena to look through Takeda's documents and business records. Takeda acknowledged the legal action when asked by Nikkei.