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UNITED STATES

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

Washington, D.C. 20549

 

 

 

FORM 8-K

 

 

 

CURRENT REPORT

Pursuant to Section 13 or Section 15(d)

of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934

 

Date of Report (Date of earliest event reported): March 22, 2023

 

 

 

AVADEL PHARMACEUTICALS PLC

(Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)

 

 

 

Ireland 001-37977 98-1341933
(State or other jurisdiction (Commission (IRS Employer
of incorporation) File Number) Identification No.)

 

10 Earlsfort Terrace

Dublin 2, Ireland, D02 T380

 

Not Applicable

(Address of principal executive offices) (Zip Code)

 

Registrant’s telephone number, including area code: +353 1 920 1000

 

Not applicable

(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))

 

Securities registered pursuant to Section 12(b) of the Act:

 

 

Title of each class Trading Symbol(s) Name of each exchange on which
registered

American Depositary Shares*

Ordinary Shares, nominal value $0.01 per share**

AVDL

N/A

The Nasdaq Global Market

 

*American Depositary Shares may be evidenced by American Depositary Receipts. Each American Depositary Share represents one (1) Ordinary Share.

 

 

** Not for trading, but only in connection with the listing of American Depositary Shares on The Nasdaq Global Market.

 

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is an emerging growth company as defined in Rule 405 of the Securities Act of 1933 (§230.405 of this chapter) or Rule 12b-2 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (§240.12b-2 of this chapter).

 

Emerging growth company ¨

 

If an emerging growth company, indicate by check mark if the registrant has elected not to use the extended transition period for complying with any new or revised financial accounting standards provided pursuant to Section 13(a) of the Exchange Act. ¨

 

 

 

 

Item 7.01 Regulation FD Disclosure.

 

On March 22, 2023, Avadel Pharmaceuticals plc (the “Company”) issued a press release titled “Avadel Pharmaceuticals Announces FDA Authorization to Import Tentatively-Approved LUMRYZ™ ahead of Anticipated Final Approval Decision.” A copy of the press release is furnished as Exhibit 99.1 to this Current Report on Form 8-K.

 

The information furnished under this Item 7.01, including Exhibit 99.1 attached hereto, shall not be deemed “filed” for purposes of Section 18 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the “Exchange Act”), or otherwise subject to the liabilities of that section nor shall it be deemed incorporated by reference in any filing under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, or the Exchange Act, except as expressly set forth by specific reference in such a filing.

 

Item 9.01. Financial Statements and Exhibits.

 

(d) Exhibits

 

Exhibit
No. 
 
  Description  
99.1   Press release issued by Avadel Pharmaceuticals plc on March 22, 2023
104   Cover Page Interactive Data File (the cover page XBRL tags are embedded in the Inline XBRL document).

 

 

SIGNATURES

 

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

 

Date: March 22, 2023 AVADEL PHARMACEUTICALS PLC
     
  By: /s/ Jerad G. Seurer
    Name: Jerad G. Seurer
    Title: General Counsel & Corporate Secretary

 

 

Exhibit 99.1

 

 

Avadel Pharmaceuticals Announces FDA Authorization to Import Tentatively-Approved LUMRYZ™ Ahead of Anticipated Final Approval Decision

 

Importation of LUMRYZ to the U.S. shortens the time to product availability following a final approval decision

 

DUBLIN, Ireland, March 22, 2023 - Avadel Pharmaceuticals plc (Nasdaq: AVDL), a biopharmaceutical company focused on transforming medicines to transform lives, today announced that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (“FDA”) has approved its Pre-Launch Activities Importation Requests (PLAIR) for LUMRYZ.

 

Through its PLAIR, Avadel is authorized to import unapproved drug product into the U.S. ahead of anticipated final approval of the tentatively approved LUMRYZ NDA, to prepare for market launch. By importing LUMRYZ into the U.S. before anticipated final approval, Avadel is able to further shorten the time to product availability following a final approval decision by the FDA.

 

“The granting of our PLAIR request by the FDA followed the submission of our amendment requesting a final approval decision for LUMRYZ. The approval to import LUMRYZ comes at an important time for Avadel as the availability of commercial supply allows us to further shorten the timeline between a potential approval and being able to provide LUMRYZ to patients,” said Greg Divis, Chief Executive Officer of Avadel Pharmaceuticals. “We remain committed to working collaboratively with FDA to bring LUMRYZ to people living with narcolepsy.”

 

About LUMRYZ

 

LUMRYZ is an investigational formulation of sodium oxybate leveraging our proprietary drug delivery technology and designed to be taken once at bedtime for the treatment of cataplexy or excessive daytime sleepiness (EDS) in adults with narcolepsy.

 

In March 2020, Avadel completed the REST-ON study, a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, pivotal Phase 3 trial, to assess the efficacy and safety of LUMRYZ in patients with narcolepsy. Among the three co-primary endpoints, LUMRYZ demonstrated statistically significant and clinically meaningful results in EDS, the clinician’s overall assessment of the patient’s functioning, and reduction in cataplexy attacks, for all three evaluated doses when compared to placebo.

 

In January 2018, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) granted LUMRYZ Orphan Drug Designation for the treatment of narcolepsy based on the plausible hypothesis that LUMRYZ may be safer than the twice-nightly formulation of sodium oxybate already approved by the FDA due to the ramifications associated with the dosing regimen of that product. LUMRYZ is currently under review by the FDA.

 

On July 18, 2022, the FDA tentatively approved the LUMRYZ NDA for the treatment of cataplexy or EDS in adults with narcolepsy. Avadel submitted a minor amendment to the FDA on March 1, 2023, requesting final approval of LUMRYZ. This minor amendment submission occurred shortly after the delisting of the REMS Patent from FDA’s Orange Book by Jazz Pharmaceuticals in response to the unanimous 3-0 panel decision by the United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit on February 24, affirming the previous ruling from the United States District Court for the Federal District of Delaware, ordering Jazz to do so.

 

Avadel is currently evaluating the long-term safety and tolerability of LUMRYZ in the open-label RESTORE clinical study. For more information, visit: www.restore-narcolepsy-study.com.

 

 

 

About PLAIR

 

A PLAIR allows for applicants with a pending NDA, ANDA, or CDER-regulated BLA nearing an FDA application decision to request permission to import an unapproved finished dosage form drug product for reconditioning in the form of approval. FDA’s granting of a PLAIR does not represent an implicit or explicit statement of the approvability of the NDA, ANDA, or CDER-regulated BLA. Rather, PLAIR facilitates the process for importing unapproved finished dosage form products to prepare for market launch based on anticipated approval of the pending application.

 

About Avadel Pharmaceuticals plc

 

Avadel Pharmaceuticals plc (Nasdaq: AVDL) is a biopharmaceutical company focused on transforming medicines to transform lives. Our approach includes applying innovative solutions to the development of medications that address the challenges patients face with current treatment options. Our current lead drug candidate, LUMRYZ, is an investigational formulation of sodium oxybate leveraging our proprietary drug delivery technology and designed to be taken once at bedtime for the treatment of cataplexy or EDS in adults with narcolepsy. For more information, please visit www.avadel.com.

 

Cautionary Disclosure Regarding Forward-Looking Statements

 

This press release includes “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. These forward-looking statements relate to our future expectations, beliefs, plans, strategies, objectives, results, conditions, financial performance, prospects, or other events. Such forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to, expectations regarding the FDA’s potential final approval of LUMRYZ, including the timing of thereof; the anticipated time savings between a potential approval and commercial launch of LUMRYZ attributable to the FDA’s grant of the PLAIR; the Company’s preparation for launch of LUMRYZ (if approved); and the market acceptance of LUMRYZ (if approved). In some cases, forward-looking statements can be identified by the use of words such as “will,” “may,” “could,” “believe,” “expect,” “look forward,” “on track,” “guidance,” “anticipate,” “estimate,” “project,” “next steps” and similar expressions, and the negatives thereof (if applicable).

 

The Company’s forward-looking statements are based on estimates and assumptions that are made within the bounds of our knowledge of our business and operations and that we consider reasonable. However, the Company’s business and operations are subject to significant risks, and, as a result, there can be no assurance that actual results and the results of the company’s business and operations will not differ materially from the results contemplated in such forward-looking statements. Factors that could cause actual results to differ from expectations in the Company’s forward-looking statements include the risks and uncertainties described in the “Risk Factors” section of Part I, Item 1A of the Company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2021, which was filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) on March 16, 2022, and subsequent SEC filings.

 

Forward-looking statements speak only as of the date they are made and are not guarantees of future performance. Accordingly, you should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements. The Company does not undertake any obligation to publicly update or revise our forward-looking statements, except as required by law.

 

 

 

Investor Contact:

 

Courtney Turiano

Stern Investor Relations, Inc.

Courtney.Turiano@sternir.com

(212) 698-8687

 

Media Contact:

 

Gabriella Greig

Real Chemistry

ggreig@realchemistry.com

(203) 249-2688