Sbaiti part of Appeals team victorious in D.C. Circuit

Media Inquiries
Brad Harwick
Aristotle Partners
(512) 779-8757
bharwick@aristotlepartners.com

For Immediate Release
January 4, 2022

In JOSHUA ATCHLEY, ET AL., v. ASTRAZENECA UK LIMITED, ET AL., appellants /plaintiffs in this case filed the original lawsuit against AstraZeneca, Pfizer and several other large medical supply and manufacturing companies, alleging that the defendants secured lucrative medical-supply contracts with Iraq’s Ministry of Health by giving corrupt payments and valuable gifts to Jaysh al-Mahdi, a known terrorist group that openly controlled the Iraqi Ministry of Health. As a result, hundreds of U.S service members and civilians were killed between 2005 and 2011 in the region.  The plaintiffs sought recovery under, among others, the Anti-Terrorism Act.

Sbaiti & Company managing partner Mazin Sbaiti authored the amicus brief in support of the plaintiffs on behalf of a group of Anti-Corruption Experts who had worked in Iraq. In the brief, the Iraq Anti-Corruption Experts provided significant insight to the D.C. Circuit of the on-the-ground realities of public corruption in Iraq asserting these manufacturing companies “knowingly provided substantial assistance to” Jaysh al-Mahdi.

After consideration of the case, this week, the D.C. Circuit panel unanimously reversed in favor of the plaintiffs. “We are pleased with the outcome and the Circuit Court’s recognition that the details supplied were substantial and actionable,” said Sbaiti.

About Sbaiti & Company PLLC

Sbaiti & Company is a Dallas-based boutique law firm focused on plaintiff and defendant representation in complex litigation matters.  Our attorneys have deep experience in Business and Commercial Disputes, Investor and Securities Litigation, Shareholder and Derivative Litigation, Director and Officer Defense, Whistleblower and False Claims Act Litigation, Catastrophic Injury and Wrongful Death, Patent and Intellectual Property Litigation, Construction Litigation, Creditor’s Right and Post-Judgment Collections and Business Advisory as Outside General Counsel. For more information, please visit https://www.sbaitilaw.com/