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Contingencies
9 Months Ended
Sep. 30, 2024
Contingencies  
Contingencies

Note 14Contingencies

Stockholders Litigation

On September 26, 2019, and October 31, 2019, purported stockholders of the Company served putative class action lawsuits in the United States District Court for the District of New Jersey captioned Allyn Turnofsky vs. electroCore, Inc., et al., Case 3:19-cv-18400, and Priewe vs. electroCore, Inc., et al., Case 1:19-cv-19653, respectively. In addition to the Company, the defendants include present and past directors and officers, and Evercore Group L.L.C., Cantor Fitzgerald & Co., JMP Securities LLC and BTIG, LLC, the underwriters for the initial public offering (IPO). The plaintiffs each seek to represent a class of stockholders who (i) purchased the Company’s common stock in the IPO or whose purchases are traceable to the IPO, or (ii) who purchased common stock between the IPO and September 25, 2019. The complaints each alleged that the defendants violated Sections 11 and 15 of the Securities Act and Sections 10(b) and 20(a) of the Exchange Act, with respect to (i) the registration statement and related prospectus for the IPO, and (ii) certain post-IPO disclosures filed with the SEC. The complaints sought unspecified compensatory damages, interest, costs and attorneys’ fees. The Priewe case was voluntarily dismissed on February 19, 2020.

In the Turnofsky case, on November 25, 2019, several plaintiffs and their counsel moved to be selected as lead plaintiff and lead plaintiff’s counsel. On April 24, 2020, the Court granted the motion of Carole Tibbs and the firm Bragar, Eagel & Squire, P.C. On July 17, 2020, the plaintiffs filed an amended complaint in Turnofsky. In addition to the prior claims, the amended complaint added an additional director defendant and two investors as defendants, and added a claim against the Company and the underwriters for violating Section 12(a)(2) of the Securities Act.

On September 15, 2020, the Company and the other defendants filed a motion to dismiss the amended complaint for failure to state a claim. On November 6, 2020, the plaintiffs filed their opposition to the motion to dismiss. The Company and the other defendants filed reply papers in support of the motion on December 7, 2020. Argument of the motion to dismiss occurred on June 18, 2021. On August 13, 2021, the Court dismissed the amended complaint with leave to re-plead. On October 4, 2021, the plaintiffs filed a second amended complaint in the Turnofsky case. The defendants moved to dismiss, and briefing on the motion was complete on January 7, 2022. On July 13, 2023, the court dismissed the second amended complaint with leave to re-plead. The plaintiffs did not file a third amended complaint. On August 23, 2023, the plaintiffs provided the court with an order of dismissal, and the court entered the order on August 24, 2023. On September 8, 2023, plaintiff Carole Tibbs filed a notice of appeal to the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit. The appeal has been docketed as number 23-2655. The principal brief of appellant and appendix were filed on January 5, 2024. The appellees’ brief was filed on February 15, 2024, and the appellant’s reply brief was filed on March 15, 2024. On October 9, 2024, the court advised that it will decide the appeal on the papers and will not hear oral argument.

The Company intends to continue to vigorously defend itself in these matters. However, in light of, among other things, the preliminary stage of these litigation matters, the Company is unable to determine the reasonable probability of loss or a range of potential loss. Accordingly, the Company has not established an accrual for potential losses, if any, that could result from any unfavorable outcome, and there can be no assurance that these litigation matters will not result in substantial defense costs and/or judgments or settlements that could adversely affect the Company’s financial condition.

The Company is subject to various claims, complaints and legal actions in the normal course of business from time to time. The Company is not aware of any further currently pending litigation for which it believes the outcome could have a material adverse effect on its operations or financial position. The Company expenses associated legal fees including those relating to the stockholder litigation described in this Note 14 in the period they are incurred.