8-K

UNITED STATES

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

WASHINGTON, D.C. 20549

FORM 8-K

CURRENT REPORT

Pursuant to Section 13 or 15(d) of the

Securities Exchange Act of 1934

Date of Report (Date of earliest event reported): October 7, 2010

LIGAND PHARMACEUTICALS INCORPORATED

(Exact Name of Registrant as Specified in Its Charter)

Delaware	001-33093	77-0160744
(State or Other Jurisdiction of Incorporation or Organization)	(Commission File Number)	(I.R.S. Employer Identification No.)

11085 North Torrey Pines Road, Suite 300

La Jolla, California 92037

(Address of Principal Executive Offices) (Zip Code)

(858) 550-7500

(Registrant’s Telephone Number, Including Area Code)

N/A

(Former Name or Former Address, if Changed Since Last Report)

Check the appropriate box below if the Form 8-K filing is intended to simultaneously satisfy the filing obligation of the registrant under any of the following provisions:

¨ Written communications pursuant to Rule 425 under the Securities Act (17 CFR 230.425)

¨ Soliciting material pursuant to Rule 14a-12 under the Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.14a-12)

¨ Pre-commencement communications pursuant to Rule 14d-2(b) under the Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.14d-2(b))

¨ Pre-commencement communications pursuant to Rule 13e-4(c) under the Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.13e-4(c))

Item 5.02 Departure of Directors or Certain Officers; Election of Directors; Appointment of Certain Officers; Compensatory Arrangements of Certain Officers.

Effective as of October 7, 2010, the Board of Directors of Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (the “Company”) appointed Sunil Patel to the Company’s Board of Directors. The appointment was made based upon the recommendation of the Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee of the Company’s Board of Directors.

There are no arrangements or understandings between Mr. Patel and any other person pursuant to which he was selected to serve on the Board of Directors. There are no transactions in which the Company or any of its subsidiaries is a party and in which Mr. Patel has a material interest subject to disclosure under Item 404(a) of Regulation S-K.

Item 7.01 Regulation FD Disclosure

On October 8, 2010, the Company issued a press release relating to the appointment of Mr. Patel to the Company’s Board of Directors. A copy of this press release is furnished herewith as Exhibit 99.1 and is incorporated herein by reference.

Note: Information in this Current Report on Form 8-K furnished pursuant to this Item 7.01 shall not be deemed to be “filed” for purposes of Section 18 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, or otherwise subject to the liabilities of that section. The information in this Current Report on Form 8-K furnished pursuant to Item 7.01 shall not be incorporated by reference into any registration statement pursuant to the Securities Act of 1933, as amended.

Item 9.01 Financial Statements and Exhibits.

(d) Exhibits.

Exhibit No.	Description
99.1	Press release dated October 8, 2010.

SIGNATURES

Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, the registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned hereunto duly authorized.

	LIGAND PHARMACEUTICALS INCORPORATED
Date: October 8, 2010	By:	/s/ Charles S. Berkman
	Name:	Charles S. Berkman
	Title:	Vice President, General Counsel and Secretary

EXHIBIT INDEX

Exhibit No.	Description
99.1	Press release dated October 8, 2010.

EX-99.1

Exhibit 99.1

Contacts:

Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated	Lippert/Heilshorn & Associates
John L. Higgins, President and CEO or	Don Markley
Erika Luib, Investor Relations	dmarkley@lhai.com
(858) 550-7896	(310) 691-7100

Ligand Appoints Sunil Patel to Board of Directors

SAN DIEGO (October 8, 2010) – Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ: LGND) today announced the appointment of Sunil Patel to the Company’s Board of Directors.

Mr. Patel, 39, has more than 17 years of senior management and R&D experience in the biotechnology industry and is currently Senior Vice President of Corporate Development for OncoMed Pharmaceuticals, a development-stage company focused on therapeutics targeting cancer stem cells. Mr. Patel has held senior management positions in corporate development, marketing, and strategy with BiPar Sciences, Allos Therapeutics, Connetics, Abgenix and Gilead Sciences. Mr. Patel also worked at McKinsey & Company serving biotech and pharmaceutical clients and has held scientific research positions at ZymoGenetics and ProCyte.

“Given Ligand’s unique biotech business model of conducting research, and acquiring and licensing assets, Sunil is an excellent addition to Ligand’s Board,” said John L. Higgins, President and Chief Executive Officer of Ligand. “Sunil has played a leadership role in numerous significant biotech licensing and M&A deals over the past several years. He has keen knowledge of the small and mid-cap biotech universe, extensive licensing and deal execution experience, and good instincts for R&D and pipeline priorities at big pharma. His ideas, knowledge and experience will be highly valuable as we work to continue to expand our business.”

Mr. Patel received his undergraduate degree in Chemistry at the University of California, Berkeley, and master’s degree in Molecular Bioengineering/Biotechnology at the University of Washington.

About Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated

Ligand discovers and develops novel drugs that address critical unmet medical needs of patients for a broad spectrum of diseases including hepatitis, muscle wasting, Alzheimer’s disease, dyslipidemia, diabetes, anemia, COPD, asthma, rheumatoid arthritis and osteoporosis. Ligand’s proprietary drug discovery and development programs are based on advanced cell-based assays, tissue-specific receptor ligand interactions and gene-expression tools. Among its peers, we believe Ligand has assembled one of the largest portfolio of assets including commercial therapies developed in partnership with pharmaceutical companies. Along with several internal programs, Ligand has established multiple alliances with the world’s leading pharmaceutical companies including GlaxoSmithKline (GSK), Merck, Pfizer, Roche, Bristol-Myers Squibb and AstraZeneca, and more than 30 programs in various stages of development.

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Caution Regarding Forward-Looking Statements

This news release contains forward looking statements by Ligand that involve risks and uncertainties and reflect Ligand’s judgment as of the date of this release. Actual events or results may differ from Ligand’s expectations. Additional information concerning these and other risk factors affecting Ligand’s business can be found in prior press releases available via www.ligand.com as well as in Ligand’s public periodic filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission at www.sec.gov. Ligand disclaims any intent or obligation to update these forward-looking statements beyond the date of this release. This caution is made under the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995.

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