Appeals court rules Pacira owes royalties on EXPAREL made using 200-liter process
PCRX•The Ninth Circuit partly reversed a judgment favoring Pacira BioSciences, ruling that royalties are owed on EXPAREL made using the 200-liter process. The original judgment resulted in a $28.3 million payment in July 2025, including $23.1 million in royalty repayments and $5.2 million in interest.
1. Appeal ruling
The Ninth Circuit on Nov. 6, 2026, partly reversed a judgment favoring Pacira BioSciences in its EXPAREL royalty dispute, ruling that royalties are owed to Research Development Foundation on EXPAREL manufactured using the 200-liter process. The district court must recalculate prejudgment interest owed by the foundation on the 45-liter EXPAREL portion of the judgment. The original judgment yielded a $28.3 million payment in July 2025, comprising $23.1 million in royalty repayments and $5.2 million in interest.
