The judgment, entered by Judge Jennifer L. Hall in Delaware, confirms findings from a July 2026 jury trial. The court ordered $2 million to be paid to Yale for RA Capital’s breach of a 2019 confidentiality agreement, alongside $1 million each to Yale and Biohaven for the theft of trade secrets. The dispute originated after Dr. Spiegel presented his technology at a 2018 university pitch event. Following that presentation, RA Capital signed a non-disclosure agreement to evaluate a potential partnership. Negotiations stalled in August 2019, but Biohaven and Yale later alleged that RA Capital used the confidential technical data shared during those talks to launch Avilar Therapeutics and develop a competing drug program.
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Federal Court Rules RA Capital and Avilar Stole Yale Biotech Secrets
A U.S. District Court has formalized a $4 million judgment against RA Capital and Avilar Therapeutics, finding the firms willfully misappropriated proprietary trade secrets from Yale University. The ruling concludes a high-stakes legal battle over the MODA targeted protein degradation platform developed by Yale professor Dr. David Spiegel.
Biohaven, which holds a license to commercialize the MODA platform, filed the lawsuit in March 2023. While the court has now finalized the award, the defendants retain the right to file post-trial motions, keeping the legal outcome subject to further judicial review.
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